___------__ |\__-- /\ _- |/ __ _ //\ / \ /__ | o| 0|__ --_ \\____-- __ \ ___ - (@@ __/ / /_ -_____--- --_ // \ \\ - //|\__/ \\ ___- \_-\_____/ \-\ // \\--\| ____// ||_ /___//_\ /___\ ascii Sonic by Han J. Lee |====================== THE SONIC FAQ FILE =====================| August 7, 1997 edition Compiled by: Daniel J. Drazen Contributors: Chris Baird, Ron Bauerle, Brad Clark, James Firmiss, Maureen Furniss, John W. Johnston, Craig Moore, Michiyo Nakajima, Paula O'Keefe, Eric E. Pearson, Jeff Pegnato, Ken Penders, David Pistone, Alessandro Sanasi, Erich Schulman, Fred Sloniker, Andy White, Shawn Wolski Address all comments, corrections, contributions and flames to: drazen@andrews.edu ***************************************************************** WHAT'S NEW?: [Note: There WILL be spoilers. You have been warned. DJD] Knuckles #5 [Sep 1997] Cover art: continued from last issue. This one actually has some connection to the story inside. I could say something about the dingoes depicted on the front cover but I understand there are kids lurking nearby. Yet ANOTHER great cameo (or whatever) from Spaz/Harvo, though Julie-Su's boots look a bit overdrawn. The figures of the dingo and of Lara-Le are the most impressive due to their being lit from below, and there's something about Lara-Le's haunted expression that I find unusually compelling. RDB note: the anime eyes might have something to do with it... The splash page. OK, you can look at it one of two ways: either the drawing (which I think is too nice to be used as wallpaper) is a contrast of Knuckles As Loner in the foreground and when he was actually part of a real family in the background; or else there's a Knuckles sibling that Ken's going to spring on us at some point. And if that sib happens to have violet eyes, then maybe that music Archy was hearing in the last issue wasn't "Lohengrin" so much as that banjo music from "Deliverance." If you don't get my meaning, e-mail me; like I said, there ARE children about. RDB note: I saw "Deliverance" albeit 25+ years ago when I was a kid, but I don't remember it dealing with _that_... Page 1: I could have done without the Lucas reference; as an attempt at humor it was too (forgive the pun) Forced. But I LOVE the dialogue between Locke and...OK, it isn't "Sir" from the last issue because he was brown and not red. All the same, the dialogue itself is great stuff. If you tighten it up a little: "I know what you're thinking." "How?" "I know you." "Oh." "I also know her." "What's SHE thinking?" "How would I know?" It reads like great Absurdist drama, along the lines of Samuel Beckett's "Waiting for Godot" or (more specifically) Tom Stoppard's "Rosenkrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead." But let's get down to business: "Lost Paradise: Part 2: Fallout" Writer: Ken Penders; Penciler: Manny Galan, Inker: Andrew Pepoy Ranger Smith, whose real name is "Constable Remington", has just busted Knuckles, Archimedes, and Julie-Su. Still, he recognized Knuckles as being a Guardian (must've read the Letters page in the last issue), and uses the old trap door bit to separate the boys from the girl. Knuckles and Archy end up in what looks like someone's apartment, but before we're introduced... Remember the appearing and disappearing of Echidnaopolis in the last issue? I didn't think that was all that impressive, to be honest with you. But the second and third panels on page 6 MORE than make up for it! We get to see two separate worlds (one populated by echidnas, the other by rather military-looking dingoes) phase-shift across each other's paths. The inhabitants of both worlds are freaked out. One dingo reports this turn of events to a General Stryker, who's so buff that he reminds me (a little too much) of Ahnold the Alsatian from Tiny Toons. He apparently also has the same barber as Beavis and Butt-head's gym teacher, Mr. Buzzcut. [Footnote: this is apparently the character who was originally named "General Von Speer" until Sega put their corporate foot down and demanded a name change, as also reported by Ken Penders at the Motor City Comic Con]. Just as well; if he'd been given a Teutonic name, the temptation to think of him as sounding like Ahnold would be even greater. Back underground, Knuckles is introduced to his host: a VERY old Guardian, specifically "your great-grandfather seven generations removed." By skipping ahead a few pages we deduce that this is none other than Hawking! Only now, as befits his namesake, he's confined to a wheelchair. The years (and apparently there have been a LOT of them!) have not been kind. He has Knuckles start playing a set of video discs that show his exploits during his "tenure as Guardian over 200 years ago." RDB note: and without the cheesy grin that his statue from #4 has... We see him in pursuit of dingoes who have stolen some military hardware. We also learn that, according to the Geezer Guardian, the dingoes have always been warlike and have always stolen echidna technology, including... OK, the LAST time I saw missiles like that was in the atrocious "Mecha Madness" story. Mike Gallagher displayed NO credibility when it came to discussing nuclear weaponry. Here's hoping Ken can learn from the past. Speaking of the past, Hawking (who is now wearing that snazzy hat worn by Knuckles in the Sonic _anime_) is shown giving instructions of some kind WRT the missiles to yet ANOTHER Guardian, this one wearing a dreadlock ring with the letter "M" on it. It's yet another tease as we follow Hawking into one of the underground tech storage vaults to fetch "perhaps the only possible solution" to their crisis: a remote control unit for an RC car? Ad on the facing page for: the ill-fated "Endgame" series, including #50 which they insist on calling a "commemorative issue." Technically, something "commemorative" serves as a reminder of someone or something, or else honors someone's death. The use of the word might have made sense if Sally really DID kick it in the course of the story arc; as it stands, and given the use of a certain character's silhouette in the "Endgame" logo, it appears that the issue is intended to be a tribute to Dr. Robotnik. Any hope on my part that we'll ever see the "director's cut" of #50 has pretty much dimmed; I just want to forget that that whole sorry arc ever happened! Fan Art: Joshua Bails of "Waren", Michigan (wonder if that's anywhere near "Warren", Michigan?) draws a "Knuckles" attacking... either it's a pirate or somebody's maiden aunt. And the Small Names In No Particular Order Page: note to the parents of "Joel A Punch Is Worth A Thousand Words' Blackwood": get therapy. Back to the flashback as Hawking uses the remote control to activate some kind of countermeasure against the incoming missiles. The sequence is given supposed weight by Hawking's narration: "I was breaking the most solemn vow a Guardian swears before all else! For the first time I wondered which mattered more--my people--or my conscience!" Gee, if I'm looking at the prospect of my fellow echidnas being turned into extra crispy nuggets because one of my ancestors had a problem with technology, and if I DON'T use that technology a huge chunk of the population I'm supposed to be guarding is going to buy the harp farm, I'd call that decision a no-brainer! Basically, what Hawking did was something that any first year cadet at Starfleet Academy would have done: "Raise shields!" The "energy shields" managed to save Echidnaopolis but of course the rest of the island was in jeopardy from the radioactive debris. So, having bought some time and after going through Dimitri/Enerjak's papers (which apparently included a copy of Sonic #50), Hawking came up with the Hyper Zone Projector which transported Echidnaopolis to another zone. Three hours, seventeen minutes, forty-two seconds into the future, perhaps. The Dingo Empire (or whatever they called it) was similarly treated but sent to a different time zone. This doesn't tie everything up in a neat package -- at that age, I guess Hawking is suffering from an advanced case of loose continuity. He then shows Knuckles a statue of the Floating Island as supported by Edmund and another echidna whose name is "conveniently" out of the frame. Hawking tells Knuckles that it symbolizes both his heritage and responsibility. Knuckles has "more questions than ever before", and he ain't the only one. But in the true spirit of dysfunctional families, Hawking tells Knuckles to "shut up and listen." At least he TRIES to, until a timely tremor cuts him off in mid-sentence. It's Julie-Su, ready to blow her top because she hasn't put in an appearance since page 4. Constable Remington decides that because she was keeping company with Knuckles at the time they were arrested she is automatically a "representative" of the Guardian and therefore qualified to handle a hostage crisis. That strikes me as a little like saying that by virtue of genetics my twin brother and I are qualified to switch jobs, but at least it keeps her involved in the plot. Somehow, Remington's lumping the dingoes in with what he tells Julie-Su are "your kind" really makes me question his judgment. Anyway, cut back to Knuckles who watches Hawking levitate himself back into his wheelchair. OK, so maybe "confined" isn't the best word. Anyway, Knuckles and Archy now see that dingoes are holding his mom, Lara-Le, hostage. Also involved, according to Remington, is "her consort." Lighten up, Remington, you can say "boyfriend." Knuckles, I'm sure, could come up with an alternative label. OK, I can be pretty slow on the uptake sometimes -- hey, I AM 45 years old! -- but it's beginning to look to me as if "Guardian" can also be pronounced "Superhero." In the discs we see Hawking flying through the air, wearing Captain Marvel gloves, and only now is it all beginning to fall into place: the powers, the solitude, Hawking's longevity, the deference shown by Remington. I'm beginning to see where this is going and, frankly, I've got mixed emotions about it. Earlier in the story Knuckles had described himself as "just an ordinary Joe doing his job" and that was pretty much the way I'd thought of him as well. I'd thought nothing unusual about Knuckles' flying/gliding/whatever. Then again, I'd thought nothing unusual about Sonic's speed or Tails' ability to fly. Seemed to make sense in the context of Mobius. That's one of the reasons I disliked "Bedtime Tails" (Sonic #38); it seemed as if Mike Kanterovich and Ken Penders were tinkering with a crossover between a furry book and a muscle-and-spandex book without either trying for a full-blown parody of the superhero genre or treating the characters as if they actually WERE superheroes. And given the rather depressing crop of superheroes nowadays (Spawn, the Maxx), the genre NEEDS to take itself less seriously! Unfortunately, muscle-and-spandex are the coin of the realm for comic books, and it looks like the Knuckles story is going to be no exception. Poor Knuckles isn't about to get buff (we now have Gen. Stryker for that), and I hope he doesn't decide to go with a dorkey costume. Unfortunately, he's showing some of the same dysfunctional characteristics as the Dark Knight model of Batman. Let's see what we have so far: he's been raised in isolation, apart from anything resembling a family, so it's no wonder he didn't exactly relate well to his own mother in the last issue -- he probably never really bonded with her, and after spending so much time with just his dad (who is, in effect, in hiding from his own son) his social skills are shot. It also probably goes a long way toward explaining why Locke's marriage to Lara-Le went sour. Since the hidden figure on page 1 professed not to understand "Jenna" or Lara-Le (whom he claims to know nevertheless), I get the sense that perhaps MOST Guardians who grew up in this system had such poor social skills that troubled relationships were the rule rather than the exception. And in claiming to "know" and "not understand" at the same time, it's an indication of just how blind to the problem the Guardians are! In addition, Knuckles has also inherited a rigid code of behavior that is NOT to be questioned; it almost prevented him from striking up a friendship with Princess Sally in "Black And Blue And Red All Over" (Sonic #44). He's only gradually getting to know his relatives whose one common denominator seems to be a well-developed knack for keeping secrets from each other and especially from Knuckles. Even the dialogues between Guardians other than Knuckles (Locke and "Sir", for instance) leave too much unsaid and convey a sense that these are NOT happy campers; Ken has yet to portray ONE Guardian who demonstrates anything resembling peace of mind. Any way you slice it, this whole Guardian system leaves a lot to be desired psychologically. Maybe it's my middle-age disillusionment with the IDEA of superheroism coming through. Still, I'm beginning to understand why the office of Guardian is hereditary: no echidna in his/her right mind would WANT the job. In the words of John Lennon, "I wouldn't do it for a giggle." Postcards For The Time Being Until We Pick A New Name: Knuckles #6, Sonic #51, and a VERY NICE film noir cover of Sonic #52. The INSIDES should only be so impressive. And letters: leave it to a Californian to ask Knuckles if he has "a sensitive side"; the rather telling reply, "I'd like to think so but I'd never admit it." Let's see: psychologists recognize that dysfunctional families tend to live by three hard and fast rules: Don't Talk; Don't Trust; Don't Feel. Knuckles has grown up apart from the society of which he's supposed to be a Guardian; the Guardians who are supposed to be initiating him into the office seem to have an attitude best summed up by Hawking's "Shut up and listen" so it seems that they don't even trust the kid; and he's not even honest about his own feelings. John Bradshaw, call your office. **************************************************************** I. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS II. SOURCE DESCRIPTIONS A. SONIC THE HEDGEHOG EPISODE GUIDE B. SONIC COMICS DESCRIPTIONS C. OTHER SOURCES I. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ============================= Q1: How did Tails come to have two tails? Q2: Is "Tails" his real name? Q3: Is Tails related to Sally? He calls her "Aunt Sally" quite often. Q4: I can't figure out what kinds of animals some of the characters are supposed to be. Q5: "Sally Acorn?" Q6: How old are the characters supposed to be? Q7: What happened with the Princess Sally miniseries? Q8: Does anyone have a theory about Sonic's speed? Q9: Why didn't ABC renew Sonic for a third season? Q10: Why was Rotor called "Boomer" in the early comics? Q11: What exactly are those chili dogs made of? Q12: What's happening with the Sonic movie? Q13: Why do the colors on some pages of SonicQuest #2 look so weird? Q14: Where did the name "Robotnik" come from? Q15: Who was that red-eyed figure at the very end of the "Doomsday Project" episode? And what would have happened during the third season? ================================================================ Q1: How did Tails come to have two tails? A: The writers of Sonic comics solicited reader responses to this question; the replies were printed in issue #2 ("All The Mail's About Tails!"). Theories range from transplantation to mutation. The latest entry is in the Sonicgram of #22. They state that Tails just happened to be born that way--with no other comment (thus illustrating the difference between an Explanation and an Answer). At this point, there is no "official" explanation as to how Tails got that way, so you're pretty much free to believe what you like. Personally, I prefer the theory that it is a mutation, induced by Robotnik's pollution of Mobius. This would accord with the fact that Tails had not been born when Robotnik took over (cf. Q6). the third season? Q2: Is "Tails" his real name? A: No, his real name is "Miles Prower" (you have to say it sorta fast to get the joke). That was his name when he was introduced on the front screen of the Sonic 2 video game. Tails was given as his nickname, and it stuck. Q3: Is Tails related to Sally? He calls her "Aunt Sally" quite often. A:This argument has been put forward by the "Sally is a fox" camp (see below). However, if that were true, then he'd also be related to Bunnie, as he's been known to address her as "Aunt Bunnie." For that matter, it seems that everyone in the Knothole gang refers to Sir Charles Hedgehog as "Uncle Chuck," though he's technically only uncle to Sonic. While it was not explicitly stated in either the comics or in the cartoons, it has to be kept in mind that all of the freedom fighters' families were disrupted by Robotnik's takeover of Mobius. It's safe to assume that they all have had relatives who have ended up being roboticized. As a result, they have become not so much a paramilitary resistance group as a loose-knit family. Sonic, for instance, clearly relates to Tails as if the latter was his little brother, the difference in species notwithstanding. Q4: I can't figure out what kinds of animals some of the characters are supposed to be. A: Admittedly, it's trickier to spot some species in the series than others. Herewith is the list: Sonic and Sir Charles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .hedgehogs Bunnie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . rabbit Tails. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .fox Rotor. . . . . . . . . . . . . .walrus (sea lion, cf. Teitelbaum) Antoine D'Coolette . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .fox Sally Acorn. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ground squirrel/chipmunk Sally's father . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .fox The identification of Sally as a ground squirrel is based on extended discussion of the topic on Internet {alt.fan.furry and rec.arts.animation). She was also declared to be a ground squirrel in the comics, most recently in the Sonicgram of Sonic #19. As for the designation "ground squirrel/chipmunk", which has been questioned by at least one correspondent, I entered it this way on the assumption that the two terms were synonymous. I have consulted a dictionary, which states that the term "ground squirrel" applies to several kinds of rodents, including the chipmunk genus _Tamias_. Given the present ambiguity, the designation will remain as is. Despite this, controversy continues. Identifying Sally's species has been particularly vexing to some fans, especially those who reason that since Sally's father is clearly a fox, then she must be one herself. It is possible that Sally takes after her mother in this regard more than her father. Cross-species mating is a definite possibility, and an example is implied in the "flashforward" at the end of "Sally's Crusade" [Sonic: In Your Face #1]. At this point, the identification of Sally's nanny, Rosie, remains ambiguous. Given her buck teeth, she could be either a beaver or a woodchuck. Since she is always shown wearing a long cloak, I've been unable to spot the character beaver tail. Final identification is still pending. Q5: "Sally Acorn"? A: This is how she was identified as far back as the beginning of the comics [Sonic Miniseries, #0, Mar 1993]. Technically, royalty do not have surnames or family names in the accepted sense; rather, the title of the personage tends to serve the purpose. Her middle name, Alicia, is apparently seldom used (cf. "Blast to the Past," part 1). If you wanted to be grandiose about it, Sally's formal title would be: Sally Alicia, Princess of the House of Acorn. But in any event it's unlikely that Sally's formal title will come back into use so long as Robotnik is in charge. Q6: How old are the characters supposed to be? A: According to the TV series ["Blast to the Past: part 1"] Sonic and Sally were both 5 years old when Sally's father was overthrown and Robotnik took over. Two other age clues were given in the "Drood Henge" episode: that Tails was 10 years old, and that Sally wouldn't "come of age" for another two years. At one point, Sally's age is explicitly given as being 16, though the comics reportedly put both Sally and Sonic at age 15. Subtracting 5 from 16 leaves the number of years Robotnik has been in charge: 11. Thus, it would appear that Tails was born after the fall of the House of Acorn. Still, the simplest way out of this dilemma would be to put the age of majority on Mobius at 17 instead of 18; that would eliminate the extra year differential without altering the stated ages of Sonic and Sally (in the comics) or of Tails (in "Drood Henge"). Q7: What happened with the Princess Sally miniseries? A: "That the Princess Sally miniseries came out at all is a minor miracle," according to Ken Penders, co-writer of the series with Mike Kanterovich. Archie Comics was late in rolling out the three-part miniseries starring Sally as the main character--a situation acknowledged in the SonicGram of #21. The story actually began with "Deadliest of the Species" in Sonic #20. The cover art for the miniseries, however, differed in subsequent advertisements: one cover for the first issue prominently featured Geoffrey St. John, while another did not. The third issue cover either did or didn't feature Sally doing battle with a clone of herself, depending upon where you see it. Two different versions of the cover for #2 appeared in Sonic #22. The fact that the Sally creative team PLUS Archie Comics PLUS SEGA reportedly came together to discuss "improving" the series (as reported in Sonic #21 -- hence the delay) would seem to indicate that someone had come down with a case of "creative differences." "In fairness to the people at SEGA," Ken writes, "they wanted to create a viable environment where the public would be anticipating more Princess Sally products such as her own video game or line of t-shirts or whatever, and the ...[mini]series represented the beginning of that, so it was important to them that it was done the best it could be." "Scott [Fulop]," he adds, "was pulling his hair out during the entire process doing his best to keep things moving along." So why haven't there been subsequent Sally miniseries? "The Princess Sally miniseries just didn't do well enough to warrant another shot. From what we can tell, it seems there was a problem with distribution which prevented a lot of people from finding and picking up the book. You also had the core audience of little boys that [sic] felt awkward picking up a title that they felt was aimed more at girls. However, when you plopped a copy into their hands and made them read the first issue, that's all it took. They were hooked." Q8: Does anyone have a theory about Sonic's speed? A: How, in other words, is Sonic able to run so fast? Apparently the same way you get to Carnegie Hall in the old joke: practice. I'm serious; here is the only print explanation I've come across so far: "Years ago, when things were right on Mobius, there lived a hedgehog named Sonic.... Sonic was only interested in running as fast as he could. Every day he practiced." [Michael Teitelbaum, _Sonic the Hedgehog_. Mahwah, NJ: Troll, 1993, pp.7- 8]. And that's the extent of Teitelbaum's explanation. Thanks a heap, Mike! Chris Baird may be onto something, and it looks like he wants to force the issue by asking Archie Comics about "The rumor going around the Internet that [Sonic] got his speed from falling into a vat of power rings when he was a baby." Q9: Why didn't ABC renew Sonic for a third season? A: There are now three answers to this question -- one appears to be definitive, but the other two are more fun. Believe what you like: 1) ABC got clobbered in the SatAM ratings of the November sweeps because the show was up against the Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers on Fox. Despite the fact that ABC shifted Sonic to an earlier time slot (doing so without warning just before the first airing of the "Doomsday" episode), Fox jazzed with its schedule so that MMPR was once more up against Sonic. This 1-2 punch was enough to do it. Source for this item: someone from within the offices of Archie Comics, as posted to alt.fan.sonic-hedgehog. 2) DiC allegedly screwed the pooch by releasing StH animation cels onto the market without clearing it with Sega. Upon learning of this, Sega took umbrage that its property was being sold without its consent or agreement to a cut of the action (can you say "anal retentive"?). Words were exchanged and the show was effectively cancelled. 3) ABC's kidvid programming has lately been adhering to a policy of "two seasons and out" for shows. Though it's possible that some ideas only last two seasons because they're kinda bankrupt to begin with. Q10: Why was Rotor called "Boomer" in the early comics? A: They finally got around to providing an answer to this one in Sonic #29 (Dec 1995). The explanation: "Rotor is Rotor's real name. Boomer was something we used to call him when we were kids to make fun of his voice." So basically we're supposed to believe "Boomer" is really Rotor's nickname. Q11: What exactly is in those chili dogs? A: When a story is set on a planet populated by sentient animals, the question of their eating habits is no small matter. How would a planet whose population would include intelligent cows and pigs deal with the subject of eating something usually thought to be made out of pork and/or beef? While several members of the Sonic mailing list have suggested that the dogs in Sonic's chili dogs are fashioned from some meat analog (see below), a possible answer appeared at the end of "Let's Get Small" (Sonic #33). In the last panel, Sonic whips up a batch of chicken soup which, Rotor explains, is "made with chili dogs." Since you can't very well call it "chicken soup" if it doesn't contain any chicken (at least as far as government regulations are concerned), it would appear that those chili dogs Sonic has been scarfing for all these years are made using chicken franks! This theory elicited the following response from Ken Penders: "they're made from soybeans or some form of seafood by-products, and let's leave it at that. Sheeesh! Some things are better off left alone!" Not as far as THIS crowd is concerned. You knew the job was dangerous when you took it, Ken. Q12: What's happening with the Sonic movie? A: At one point (Sonic #19), a hint was dropped in the Sonic-Gram that a Sonic the Hedgehog film was in the works. After that, however, there was no news. In the summer of 1996, however, a blurb about a Sonic movie appeared in a magazine for video gamers. Try as I might, I could never determine which magazine it came from or what the exact wording of the blurb was. In any event, fans seized on this spark of a rumor and fanned it into flame. Paul Castiglia at Archie Comic helped matters (or didn't, as will be seen below) by issuing a clarifying statement that perhaps the fans were thinking of the upcoming "An X-Tremely Sonic Christmas" special to be shown some time during Thanksgiving Week, 1996, on the USA cable network. Interest remained high until, in response to repeated questions, Paul confessed that the script called for Sonic and Tails to confound Robotnik's plan to impersonate Santa Claus, aided by Scratch and Grounder. Yes, turns out the special was a spinoff of the syndicated series and not the SatAM series. Interest in the special promptly sank like a stone. As for the film, the latest word on that came from Paul Castiglia's press release touting the "Sonic Live" special, wherein Paul tosses off the fact that Sonic is "being optioned for a feature motion picture." Translation: don't hold your breath waiting. Q13: Why do the colors on some pages of SonicQuest #2 look so weird? Why does Knuckles look like he's been dipped in chocolate? Why isn't Sonic his usual shade of blue? Why does Snively's skin have the same hue as a cup of rosehip tea? In short, why ARE pages 1, 7, 8, [16], 17, and the Find Your Name and Fan Art pages of SonicQuest #2 so off-color? A: "It's completely the printer's fault," according to Paul Castiglia. To print a four-color comic like Sonic The Hedgehog, the artwork that comes from the likes of Pat Spaziante or Art Mawhinney has to undergo a process called color separation. The color printing of a comic book works the same way as a color picture on a TV screen or computer monitor. What appears on the page to be a solid color is actually a composite of four different colors: black, red (or magenta), yellow, and blue (or cyan) in varying amounts. If you've ever tried customizing colors for a utility like Paintbox you know what I'm talking about. Anyway, when it came time to print the aforementioned pages, according to Paul, "the printer shot the red plate twice." Which means that the red values were twice what they were supposed to be. With much more red than was called for, a condition known as "oversaturation" set in, and it apparently went undetected by the printer once the presses started to roll. So some of the pages came out looking like they'd been printed with mud. The comic is "PRINTED IN CANADA" as it proudly says in the fine print in the front of every issue, and not in-house at Archie Comics in Mamaroneck, New York. So when the finished issue landed on the desks at Mamaroneck, "we hit the roof!...no one [was] more horrified that US at the final result!!!" Unfortunately, "this issue was running late" so it apparently went out into the distribution pipeline before anyone could notice the issue's, uh, "beauty marks". "With our former printer, we used to get make-readys [final-run quality copies to be used for proofreading, etc.] in advance.... We used to have about a 2-day window to say 'WHOA! Stop the presses--you screwed up!' with them." In this case, the haste to distribute assured that nobody knew about the oversaturated pages until it was too late. The end result? The printer will probably institute some kind of quality control system in the wake of this "debacle." They have also apologized to Archie, which will receive a credit on future work. And we've got some strange-looking pages. Could be worse: another correspondent reports that in one issue of the British Sonic comic (published by Fleetway), a mistake in the composing room resulted in the SAME EXACT WORD BALLOONS being used on two consecutive pages. This resulted in the loss of key bits of dialogue and ruined continuity. So I guess we got off easy on this side of the Atlantic. Q14: Where did the name "Robotnik" come from? A: "Robotnik" is Czechoslovakian. The word literally means "worker". It arrived in the English-speaking world by way of the play "RUR" [which stands for "Rossum's Universal Robots" by Karel Capek. There have long been stories of mechanical beings come to life, from Pinocchio to the Golem of Prague, but it wasn't until Capek that the word "robot" came to be used for such a being. Since there exists no small debate as to the extent to which a Mobian becomes mechanical when roboticized, it's debatable as to whether the process turns anyone into a "true" (100%) robot. Q15: Who was that red-eyed figure at the very end of the "Doomsday Project" episode? And what would have happened during the third season? A: The identity of the figure accompanying Snively at the end of "Doomsday" has been the subject of quite a bit of speculation. The most popular guesses have included Knuckles and Mecha-Sonic. To get the straight dope, longtime list member Alessandro Sanasi in Germany managed to track down none other than Ben Hurst, writer of the episode in question and (with Pat Allee) one of the key writers for the second season of Sonic. Here is the result of their exchange of e-mail: "The red eyes you saw were NAGUS, the sorcerer trapped in the Void." In addition, it turns out that Robotnik indeed survived the destruction of the Doomsday device: "At the moment the Doomsday machine was destroyed, [Nagus] was able to exploit the energies [released by the destruction as well as by the Deep Power Stones, presumably] and pull Robotnik into the Void." Hold onto your seats for a thumbnail outline of the third season: "Snively takes over...Robotropolis...during the first two episodes, he battles the Freedom Fighters. Without Robotnik's cunning, however, he finds himself on the brink of losing everything. Meanwhile, Nagus is having a delightful time 'torturing' Robotnik [cf. the malicious shape-shifting Robotnik underwent in "The Void"] while plotting his...escape. He's... discovered the magic which will enable him to leave the Void without turning to crystal...But...Robotnik has found a means to communicate with Snively--telling the little guy his location. Snively...tells Robotnik where he can get off. "But then, as the Freedom Fighters are on the brink of taking over Robotropolis, Snively opens the Void, releasing Robotnik-- and accidentally releasing Nagus and Sally's father.... Now Nagus is in charge, Robotnik is his "Snively" [i.e., lackey], and Snively becomes a nobody. Nagus uses the King to bait a trap to catch Sally. Robotnik plots to regain his power and Snively defects to the Freedom Fighters." Wow! And he didn't even plan on killing anyone, either! ================================================================= NOTICE: The fact that episode and story summaries appear here means there is a good chance that you will encounter spoilers. This is your only notice! II. SOURCE DESCRIPTIONS A. SONIC THE HEDGEHOG EPISODE GUIDE 1. First Season: 1993-94 Super Sonic Writer: Jules Dennis When Nicole malfunctions, Sonic and Sally go to Robotropolis to get replacement parts. While there, they discover the Forbidden Zone and a being named Lezar. Lezar causes Sonic to lose his speed abilities, and teaches him that he can still accomplish things without it. Sonic Boom Writer: Len Janson While on a mission in Robotropolis, Sally intercepts a message which includes the use of her father's pet name for her. They follow the lead to the Dark Swamp and the remains of Ironlock Prison. In the process, a freedom fighter named Cat is captured. The freedom fighters gain maps to Robotropolis, but the search for Sally's father proves futile. Sonic and Sally Writers: Pat Allee and Ben Hurst Before becoming the principle writers for the second season, Allee and Hurst wrote this account of Sally's capture by Robotnik's forces. Sonic rescues what he thinks is Sally but what is instead a robot double. Back in Knothole, Tails begins to doubt Sally's behavior because of small details, such as how she reads a bedtime story. After first dismissing Tails' fears, Sonic also comes to realizes he's been dealing with a "Stepford Sally." Hooked on Sonics Writer: Randy Rogel In an attempt to impress Sally, Antoine tries to capture Robotnik by himself. He attempts to lure Robotnik into the open with the offer of a power ring, but Antoine is himself captured and Sonic has to rescue him. Ultra Sonic Writer: David Villaire While on a raid in Robotropolis, Sonic finds his Uncle Chuck as a robot worker in a crystal mine. Uncle Chuck recovers his mind and will long enough to help destroy a giant crystal which would have damaged the ecosystem of the entire planet. As Uncle Chuck loses control of his will, Sonic vows to return for him. Sonic's Nightmare Writer: Frank Santopadre The freedom fighters are captured and held on a deserted island refinery. Sonic must not only rescue them but he also has to deal with a recurring nightmare where he unable to prevent Sally's being roboticized. Warp Sonic Writer: Matt Uitz The freedom fighters discover an underground civilization called Lower Mobius and one of its citizens, Griff. Lower Mobius draws energy from a power crystal, but it is weakening. Feigning friendship, Griff visits Knothole and steals the power stone which is the source of the power rings. After fighting off some mechanical rats, the power stone is retrieved. Griff apologizes for his theft and is given a portion of the stone to aid Lower Mobius. Harmonic Sonic Writer: David Villaire After Robotnik launches a robot-manned orbiting space station to locate Knothole, the Knothole freedom fighters use a rocket booster to reach and destroy it. Sonic and the Secret Scrolls Writer: Janis Diamond The freedom fighters journey to Mauga (sp?) to recover some legendary scrolls, but Robotnik is tailing them. Robotnik's ship is hurled off a plateau by a violent wind, and the Knothole gang mistakenly believe he is finished. Will they make the same mistake at the end of the second season? Sub-Sonic Writer: Barbara Slade Sonic discovers a stream of water that makes plants grow at a fantastic rate. In their search for the source, the Knothole gang discover a subterranean creature whose habitat has been disturbed by Robotnik's drilling operations. Heads or Tails Writer: Len Janson On a raid of Robotropolis, Sonic runs into Muttski, his now- roboticized pet dog and vows to return him to normal someday. The freedom fighters also have to contend with a squadron of Buzzbombers carrying an orange defoliant [Agent Orange? Hmmmm...] intent on destroying the Great Forest and exposing Knothole. Artwork in this ep is decidedly off-model. Sonic Past Cool Writers: Kayte Kuch & Sheryl Scarborough Tails finds a baby terrapod and the freedom fighters escort the terrapod herd to Boulder Bay, where they will be safe from Robotnik. Sonic Racer Writer: Len Janson While on a mission to disable Robotnik's power generators, Sonic is tempted into participating in a contest against a super-fast robot designed to capture him. While he engages the bot, Bunnie, Sally and Antoine go after their target: Robotnik's back-up generator. 2. Second Season: 1994-95 Game Guy Sonic rescues someone from capture by Robotnik; he turns out to be Ari, a freedom fighter from another group. Ari directs Sonic to a place which turns out to be a trap. Sonic manages to escape (after Robotnik toys with him), but Ari--whose comrades were roboticized and who was himself deceived by Robotnik--is sucked into the Void. Before falling into the Void, Ari says something about a list of other freedom fighters. Sonic Conversion To my way of thinking, THE breakthrough episode for the series! The Knothole gang test a deroboticizing process on Bunnie, whose partially-roboticized body is returned to normal. Sonic then goes after Uncle Chuck and is able to convince him to undergo the process. However, the process turns out to be only temporary as, in a poignant scene, Bunnie reverts to a half-robot. When Uncle Chuck reverts to robotic form, he captures Tails and Antoine for delivery to Robotnik; Sonic confronts him and manages to break the hold on Uncle Chuck's mind. Uncle Chuck returns to Robotropolis to work as a spy for the Knothole gang. No Brainer Sonic's thought processes are temporarily scrambled while on a mission in Robotropolis. Taking advantage of the situation, Snively convinces Sonic that they are friends. The disruption wears off just as the Knothole gang face imminent capture. Blast to the Past (two parts) Dulcy takes Sonic and Sally to a floating island where they use the Time Stones to return to Mobotropolis on the eve of the planet's conquest by Dr. Robotnik (then known as Julian, affiliated with the War Ministry and supposedly in charge of its dismantling). They also encounter themselves as 5-year-olds and learn that it was Sonic's Uncle Chuck who had perfected the roboticizer process in the first place, though Julian/Robotnik stole the process. Sally and Sonic work to keep their child selves from being roboticized, to prevent the Great Forest from being destroyed, and to make sure that Sally's nanny, Rosie, would not get captured. Fed Up With Antoine/Ghost Busted (back to back episodes) Feeling unappreciated, Antoine allows himself to be made "king" by a group of renegades, unaware that with the office comes the "honor" of being an entree./While out camping, Sonic's ghost story panics Tails, and Antoine once more demonstrates his ineptitude. Dulcy Dulcy begins having overpowering urges to fly to Dragonsnest, a nesting site for female dragons. She, Sonic and Sally, arrive just as Robotnik has captured another female dragon; they then discover the dragon's egg inside Dragonsnest. Taking the egg back to Knothole, they rescue the female dragon who returns in time to hatch the egg. The Void Sonic discovers an opening to the Void while out in the "Great Unknown" [another name for the Forbidden Zone?]. Sally and Bunnie are put under a spell and pulled into the Void by a sorcerer named Naugus, who had been imprisoned there years before by Robotnik and who needs Sonic's speed to escape. Sonic learns what has happened from Nicole and allows himself to be pulled into the Void. Attempting to rescue Sally and Bunnie, he is tricked into rescuing what he thinks is Sally's father but is really Naugus. Sonic returns to the Void and finds not only Sally and Bunnie but the King and Ari as well. He brings them all out, but Naugus and the King have spent so much time in the Void that their bodies cannot handle living on Mobius. Naugus breaks off his tormenting of Robotnik, and Sally's father gives her the list of other resistance groups. Sally goes through the emotional rollercoaster ride of her life. The Odd Couple/Ro-Becca (back to back episodes) After a crash landing by Dulcy leaves Sonic homeless he moves in with Antoine, who predictably gets bent out of shape by Sonic's lifestyle./Rotor cobbles together a robot which develops the hots for Antoine. Cry of the Wolf The Knothole freedom fighters search for and discover the Wolf Pack, the remnants of an ancient race who are now one of the other resistance groups. After several unsuccessful attempts to destroy a test pod from the Doomsday Project, Sonic draws it into a lightning storm and destroys it. Drood Henge Sonic and Tails discover an archaeological dig by Robotnik; they learn from Nicole that the object of the search is the Deep Power Stones, and that Robotnik has recovered one of the two. Tails comes up with a plan to retrieve the second stone before Robotnik can get to it. Spyhog On the eve of final preparations of the Doomsday project, Robotnik begins to suspect that there is a spy in his midst. Uncle Chuck's cover is blown, but he escapes capture and goes back underground with a different cover. Doomsday In the season finale, a combined force of the five freedom fighter groups tries to destroy the Doomsday project. Robotnik, however, seems to have too many safeguards built in. As a last resort, Sonic and Sally use the Deep Power Stones. The Doomsday project is destroyed; Robotnik's fate is uncertain but Snively is ready to step into his shoes in a burst of megalomania and overacting. Cliffhanger: who or what does Snively have to help him? We'll never know: ABC chose not to run StH for a third season (see FAQ #9). VOICE CREDITS: SONIC: Jaleel White SALLY: Kath Soucie NICOLE: Kath Soucie (uncredited) TAILS: Bradley Pierce BUNNIE: Christine Cavanaugh ANTOINE: Rob Paulsen ROTOR: Mark Ballou (1st season) Cam Brainard (2d season) DULCY: Cree Summer Franks UNCLE CHUCK: William Windom ROBOTNIK: Jim Cummings SNIVELY: Charlie Adler ADDITIONAL VOICES: (First season): David Doyle Gaille Heindenmann Dana Hill Danny Mann Jason Marsden Charlie Schlatter Frank Welker (Second season): Shari Belafonte: Lupee (?) Michael Bell: Naugus (?) Crystal Cooke Tim Curry: Sally's father; Keeper of the Time Stones Dave Fennoy Dorian Harewood John Kassir Katie Leigh Nancy Linari Victor Love Tahj Mowry Hal Rayle Alaina Reed Hall Lindsay Ridgeway April Winchell Want to contact DiC? Write or phone: DiC 303 North Glenoaks Blvd. Burbank, CA 91502 (818) 955-5400 (818) 955-5696 (FAX) B. SONIC COMICS DESCRIPTIONS [CONTRIBUTIONS WELCOME] Now, direct from the Great White North, Brad Clark summarizes the original four-part Sonic miniseries: Issue 0 "Don't Cry For Me, Mobius" Story: Michael Gallagher, Art: Scott Shaw! Sonic is chased by Dr. Robotnik. After the chase, which Robotnik loses, Sonic returns to Knothole where most of the main characters are introduced for the first time. (Note: Rotor is referred to as "Boomer.") Antoine then announces that there is a leak in Knothole (Knothole is located underground in this issue) that is caused by Robotnik. Sonic defeats Robotnik with a power ring. "The Royal Family of Mobius" Gallagher/Shaw! Takes place before Robotnik was in power and has Sonic and Uncle Chuck running a chilidog take-out stand. Robotnik destroys the stand and captures Muttski and Uncle Chuck. Sonic meets Sally (with yellow hair and red fur) who introduces him to the rest of the freedom fighters in Knothole. Issue 1 "Run, Sally, Run" Gallagher/Shaw! Sally [this time with pink fur and black hair] goes to see Robotnik about the return of her father. Robotnik captures Sally and almost throws her into the "Robo-machine." Sonic rescues Sally only to discover that Sally had wanted to get caught in order to gather information on the roboticizer, using some special boots designed by Boomer/Rotor. Issue 2 "A Crowning Achievement" Gallagher/Shaw! Sally decides to wear the "Crown of the Acorn Kings" which belonged to her father, but the crown is missing. They discover a robotic freedom fighter who tells them that Robotnik has stolen the crown and has scattered its jewels (the four Chaos Emeralds) throughout the land. Sonic retrieves the emeralds and Boomer/Rotor repairs the crown. Issue 3 "Sonic Flashback" Gallagher & Shaw! Sonic and Robotnik recall when they were kids. Uncle Chuck invents the power rings. Sonic and Robotnik have an argument, and it escalates until Robotnik is constructing mechanical monsters out of Uncle Chuck's appliances. Sonic then wakes up -- it was all just a daydream -- and resumes being chased by Robotnik. "Why Ask Spy" Sonic is made to look like a robot to trick Robotnik and to destroy one of his factories. In the process, Sonic discovers Uncle Chuck and Muttski who have both been roboticized. Sonic destroys the factory. And a tip of the ol' freedom fighters' fedora to JOHN W. JOHNSTON for supplying summaries for issues 1-15 plus 17: #1 [Aug 1993] "Meet Me At The Corner of Hedgehog and Vine!" Story: M. Gallagher; art: D. Manak One of Robotnik's SWATbots develops a mechanical plant called "Krudzu" and modifies a Burrobot to plant its seeds in the Great Forest. Antoine, depressed because Sally only pays attention to Sonic, decides to get her a bouquet of flowers. He gets caught by the Krudzu, Sonic saves him, and they discover that the Krudzu is not waterproof. "You Bet My Life!" Gallagher & Manak Boomer/Rotor discovers that Robotnik is making a big presentation in the Casino Night Zone. Sonic crashes the party, only to be subdued by Robotnik's newest baddie: Orbinaut. He is put in a giant pinball machine and sent through a very rough ride. When he escapes from the pinball machine, Sonic blows up the casino and puts Robotnik into orbit. [Notes: Apparently the casino was rebuilt for "The Man From H.E.D.G.E.H.O.G." (#16); the pinball (Spinball?) plot was used to better effect later on in the "Game Guy" episode of the TV series; Rotor was still being called "Boomer" at this time. DJD] #2 [Sep 1993] "Triple Trouble" Gallagher/Manak Robotnik sends his newest badnik, Coconuts, after Sonic and Tails. When they send Coconuts' parts back COD, Robotnik sends two more badniks, Scratch and Grounder, after Sonic. [No, this has no relation to the Game Gear game. It does, however, set up the characters from the syndicated TV series. DJD] "Vertigo A Go Go!" Gallagher/Manak Sonic is out collecting rings when he warps into an extremely warped zone where he meets two friends, Al and Cal. "All The Mail's About Tails" Gallagher (rewrite)/Manak Sonic and Tails read letters from fans who express their opinions about how Tails got his two tails. One theory was: one of Tails' ancestors was owned by Charles Dickens (A Tails of Two Cities). Another theory was that Tails was a mutant (and couldn't get a job with the X-Men). Another theory says he was a loss leader at a carnival freak show. Another theory says he was one of Dr. Frankenstein's creations. Another theory says that Tails has Antoine's tail (and hair). And another theory involved something dealing with evolution. #3 [Oct 1993] "The Bomb Bugs Me" Gallagher/Manak Sonic informs Sally and Boomer/Rotor that Robotnik has "the bomb." To trick Robotnik, they project a picket line on a wall outside his office. Boomer/Rotor disguises himself as Robotnik to trick Crabmeat into giving "the bomb" to the freedom fighters, but this plan backfires when Robotnik shows up dressed in a Boomer suit. "Rabbit Deployment" Gallagher/Manak Sonic and Boomer/Rotor travel to the Southern Section of Mobius (Sonic pulling Boomer who wears inline skates). They come across two SWATbots who have thrown a captured rabbit into a portable roboticizer. They are delayed in rescuing her because they are "tied up." They finally shut down the roboticizer and take it and the half rabbit-half robot with them. When she recovers, she gives her name as Bunnie Rabbot and demonstrates her abilities. Meanwhile the forest above Knothole is being trashed by a giant burrobot. When Sonic gets zapped, Bunnie picks up the burrobot and throws it 50 meters. Sonic then traps the burrobot by burying it. [This represents the first attempt to explain the origins of Bunnie. Since then, both fanfic and professional efforts -- Teitelbaum's second book: Robotnik's Revenge -- have covered the same ground. The situation is complicated by the fact that Bunnie appears as one of the children in Blast to the Past, and so wouldn't be a stranger to the Knothole Gang. In fact, BttP, part 2 featured a tease of Bunnie about to be roboticized as a child. Note also that Knothole is still an underground base at this time. DJD] #4 [Nov 1993] "The Lizard of Odd!" Gallagher/Manak Due to a roboticizer mishap caused by Buzzbomber, Robotnik turns a small salamander into his most powerful badnik [No, it's not Newt Gingrich! DJD]: Universalamander. When Sonic tries to attack him, Universalamander eats Sonic. Sonic escapes by making "Lizard Lips" belch. To defeat him, Sonic transforms into Super Sonic, gets an important component from the confiscated roboticizer [see above, "Rabbit Deployment"], and cuts Universalamander down to size. "Tails' Little Tale" Gallagher/Manak While Sonic rests after defeating Universalamander, Tails embarks on his first solo adventure. Unaware of Tails, Robotnik is in the middle of a company picnic. [You're right, it DOES sound lame! DJD] Tails get plucked by Buzzbomber and Orbinaut, but defeats both of them. Tails gets overconfident and is captured by two SWATbots making shadow-puppets. When they try to roboticize him, Sonic saves Tails. #5 [Dec 1993] "Olympic Trials and Errors" Story: Angelo Decasare [debut]; Art: Manak Robotnik challenges the freedom fighters to compete in Olympic games. If they win even one event, Robotnik "promises" to restore Mobius; if they lose, they'll be turned into robots. Before the competition, a SWATbot switches Sonic's sneakers with energy-draining shoes. When Sonic drops on the track, the other freedom fighters (except for Tails) take his place. While Tails is looking for materials to make a Sonic sculpture, he finds Sonic's real sneakers and returns them to him. [The synopsis ends here; presumably, Sonic wins, Robotnik renegs, and it's back to usiness as usual. The linkage between Tails and sculpture was repeated in "That's The Spirit" (#20). DJD] "Chomp on This, Chump!" Decesare/Manak While Sonic and Tails help Sally deal with a batch of extra- thick pancake batter, Boomer/Rotor decides to buy a mail-order ant farm. What Boomer/Rotor doesn't know is that the farm he receives came from Robotnik. Instead of ants, Boomer/Rotor receives a Termite-nator, a termite which eats wood and paper and which grows as it eats. Remembering Sally's pancake batter recipe, Sonic whips up a batch and fills a hollow log with it. Boomer/Rotor returns the ant farm to sender. [What is it with Rotor and ant farms? He also had one in "Ivo Robotnik, Freedom Fighter" (#23). DJD] #6 [Jan 1994] "The Spin Doctor" Gallagher/Manak When the freedom fighters attack Robotnik's factory, they find that Robotnik has relocated to deep within Mount Mobius, an active volcano. Sonic enters the Veg-O-Matic Fortress where he is attacked by Rexxon and Scorpius. After defeating them, he runs into two allies, Hip and Hop, who warn him about the Ferrons. After Sonic trashes the Ferrons, he comes across a cell full of animals awaiting roboticization. Just as Sonic believes he is on Robotnik's trail, he is shot out of the volcano, only to be rescued by Tails. "Sonic's Christmas Carol" Decesare/Manak [The cast enacts You-Know-What by You-Know-Who -- if you DON'T, better take a refresher course in English Lit. Significant in that they finally get the issue of Rotor's name straightened out. DJD] #7 [Feb 1994] "Uncle Chuck's Treasure" Decesare/Manak When Rotor accidentally sends Tails through the roof (literally), they find an old treasure map belonging to Uncle Chuck. They believe the "treasure" may be an invention that will help them defeat Robotnik. According to the map, the treasure was buried in Mobius National Park; unfortunately, the park had since been destroyed by being turned into a toxic waste dump. When the freedom fighters find the spot, Robotnik attacks. Sonic fights back using the toxic wastes, but Robotnik snatches the treasure from them as soon as they dig it up. Robotnik discovers that the "treasure" is really Sonic's bronzed baby booties (try saying THAT 3 times fast ;-) ). "Sorceress in Distress" Decesare/Manak Sally dresses as a sorceress for the annual Fright Night party, but needs a staff to complete the outfit. She finds one in the Forest and (due to a string of coincidences) believes it to be real. Robotnik sees the "sorceress" and, unaware that it's Sally, drags her back to Robotropolis; object: matrimony! Sonic follows them. Robotnik wants to see a demonstration of the sorceress's "magic" and Sally obliges, with a little help from Sonic. #8 [Mar 1994] "Bot's All, Folks!" Gallagher/Manak When Crabmeat is caught reading Sonic the Hedgehog comics, Robotnik is inspired to build super-powered robots to attack Sonic. Sonic meets, and defeats, "Botman," "Wolvurkel" (a factory second sent by mistake), "Spawnmower," "Magbot--Freedom Fighter Fighter," "Captain Marbot" and "Mighty 'Bot." [Furries might have a hard time slogging through this story! "Wolvurkel" is apparently an amusing *homage* to Jaleel White, the voice of Sonic in both the SatAM and daily syndie series. DJD] "A Little Music Goes A Long Way" Gallagher/Manak Sonic finds an old guitar, and the rest of the freedom fighters decide to form a band. Robotnik hears the music and decides to put a stop to it with a shrink ray. While the Freedom Fighters rummage through the Mobius Music Hall, Robotnik and Snively shrink them. Robotnik uses a Pest Buster vacuum to suck up the shrunken Sonic, but before they can put him inside a mobile roboticizer the shrink ray wears off and the freedom fighters return to normal size. Before Robotnik's reinforcements can arrive, the freedom fighters use music to chase him out of the hall. #9 [Apr 1994] "Pseudo-Sonic!" Gallagher/Manak After a thorough analysis of Sonic's profile, Robotnik builds his ultimate eil robot, "Pseudo-Sonic." Meanwhile, Sonic is out picking flowers for Sally. Unfortunately, he comes in contact with some poison sumac and blows up like a balloon. The Pseudo-Sonic discovers Knothole and is about to reveal its location. Tails, dragging his tails on the ground, builds up a static electricity charge and shorts out Pseudo-Sonic. Sonic tries to get back to Knothole but is apprehended by Robotnik. Bunnie slam-dunks Robotnik and helps cure Sonic's rash. "What's the Point?" Decesare/Manak While looking for a birthday present for Sally, Sonic comes upon a Mobian needl bird with a broken wing. Sonic wants to give it as a present, but Sally reminds him of other animals the freedom fighters have brought back. Meanwhile the needle bird, dubbed Thorny, has eaten Sally's birthday cake. Sally goes off to replace the cake while Sonic goes to return Thorny to the Great Forest. Sally is caught by a mechanical tree; Sonic almost suffers the same fate, but is rescued by Thorny. Sonic then rescues Sally while Thorny goes after Robotnik (who, needless to say, was behind the mechanical trees). #10 [May 1994] "Revenge of the Nerbs!" Decesare/Manak While attempting to steal power from Robotropolis, the freedom fighters are caught in a force field. Before the "Robotropolis Good Neighbor Society" can apprehend them, the freedom fighters escape thropugh a hole in the ground dug for them by a Nerb, part of an underground-dewlling race. The king of the Nerbs maintains that contact with surface-dwellers is bad news, but their air vents and water supply are being threatened by construction activity aboveground. On their way to the surface, they move from a Nerb tunnel to a Mobian sewer pipe. They come up to find Robotnik doing some excavating to build an underground installation; they also find three Nerb prisoners. Sonic frees the Nerbs and directs Tails to escort them back underground; Sonic then opens a line to the Mobius River, flooding Robotnik's construction site. The freedom fighters are proclaimed Honorary Nerbs. "'Twan With The Wind" Story: Angelo Decesare/Art: Art Mawhinney [debut] The freedom fighters use Antoine's hot air balloon to scout out a suitable location for their picnic. Two Buzzbombers attack the balloon. Robotnik learns of the picnic and decides to crash it. While everyone else is having fun at the picnic, Antoine mopes about his balloon. But when Robotnik attacks, it's up to Antoine to patch up the balloon and come to the rescue. #11 [Jun 1994] "The Good, The Bad, And The Hedgehog" Story: Mike Kanterovich & Ken Penders [debut]/Art: Manak The freedom fighters witness Robotnik dumping toxic waste into a river. Sonic tries taking a "short cut" via the Cosmic Interstate to get there, but winds up on an alternate Mobius where Robotnik is a benevolent person and Sonic is a leather-clad punk. After a round-the-world chase, Sonic captures the Antisonic (c.f., "When Hedgehogs Collide," #24) and the AntiRobotnik devises a way to undo the toxic spill cause by Robotnik. "Beat The Clock" Kanterovich & Penders/Manak Wanting to get to the top slot of Robotnik's Top Ten Badnik List, Coconuts traps the freedom fighters. "Food For Thought, or, You Are What You Eat" Kanterovich & Penders/Mawhinney After scarfing a ton of chili dogs as a midnight snack, Sonic dreams that everyone has turned into junk food: Sonic is a chili dog, Sally is an ice cream cone, Tails is an order of fries (regular), and they all confront Chef Ivo Robo-Burger. The fries get caught by Robo-Burger so chili dog goes to rescue him. But he slips on a banana peel and right before Tails gets deep-fried, Sonic wakes up. #12 [Jul 1994] "A Timely Arrival" Gallagher/Mawhinney Robotnik builds a time machine to get rid of Sonic by transporting him to the past. Sonic enters the trap and lands in prehistoric Mobius. There he meets Sonugh the Boghog, and the caveman Ivo Robughnik. Sonic also meets other prehistoric freedom fighters, but they're all afraid of the surface because it offers no cover [Sounds like they're still dealing with an underground Mobius. DJD]. Sonic finishes transplanting some hedges near the entrance when he is pulled back to his own time by the freedom fighters, who have confiscated the time machine. "Bold-Headed Eagle" Kanterovich & Penders/Mawhinney While avoiding Robotnik in the Mobius Mountains, Sonic comes across an old eagle, Cyril. He tells Sonic how his flock was roboticized and how he has lived in hiding. Sonic convinces him to risk flying, and he discovers that his flock still exists. Cyril returns the favor by rescuing Sonic when Robotnik attacks. "The Lynx Is A Jinx" Decesare/Mawhinney While on a rescue mission, Sonic comes across a lynx named Larry, a.k.a. Super Jinx. He proves this when the branch of a tree that he's sitting on gives way and injures some freedom fighters on the way down. The freedom fighters head back to Knothole to nurse their wounds and Sonic tries to find a hiding place for Larry. When Sonic and Larry learn that the freedom fighters have been captured, Larry is sent out to be captured by the SWATbots who, in turn, suffer various misfortunes. #13 [Aug 1994] "This Island Hedgehog" Kanterovich & Penders/Manak Sonic and Tails discover a floating island, but their plane is shot down by a rocket as they approach. After landing and enduring some hazards, they meet Knuckles the Echidna. Thinking that they have come to steal the island's Chaos Emerald, he gives them a ten-minute head start before giving chase. Meanwhile, Robotnik, who planted the suggestion in Knuckles' mind, is stealing the Emerald himself. Knuckles discovers the theft and Sonic recovers the Emerald. "Space In Your Face" Decesare/Mawhinney Robotnik plans to launch a space-based weapon, RoboStorm. This device will not only turn living beings into robots, it will also jam all regular television broadcasts and replace them with infomercials. The freedom fighters learn of this and enter the ship. Robotnik appears, however, before they can do any damage to the systems, so they blast off with Robotnik in pursuit. They crash-land on the moon Muckery. Using the local materials (i.e., mush), they get the better of Robotnik. #14 [Sep 1994] "Tails' Taste of Power" Decesare/Mawhinney Tails eats a piece of fruit he finds growing in Rotor's greenhouse. This fruit, from the Mobian Tree of Wisdom, makes Tails into a super-genius. Sally and Bunnie are attacked by a giant Shredbot. Tails avoids the bot's blades in such a way that the bot self-destructs. He goes off to face Robotnik, just as the effects of the fruit begin to wear off. Sonic bluffs Robotnik with a medal which Tails gave himself earlier. "Do It Yourself Sonic" Kanterovich & Penders/Manak Readers are invited to fill in the word balloons and color the panels on a page to create their own comic (apparently involving Robotnik interrupting Sonic and Tails on a fishing trip). Winners announced in issue #23. "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!" Kanterovich & Penders/Mawhinney Robotnik plans to capture Sally and Bunnie in a booby- trapped shopping mall. After they're caught, the girls accuse Robotnik of being a MCP; they then smash SWATbots and gift-wrap Robotnik. #15 [Oct 1994] "Rockin' The Bot!" Decesare/Manak While out running with lightning, Sonic spies a frog in trouble. For rescuing it, the frog gives Sonic three magic stones: a green one for super strength, a yellow one for leaping great distances, and a red one for elasticity. Since Sonic doesn't believe the frog, he gives the stones to Tails. Robotnik, in a Beetlebot, attack the freedom fighters while they're out testing an all-terrain vehicle. Robotnik throws a boulder at Sonic while he's holding the red stone; Sonic is flattened but resumes his shape. Sonic tries attacking the Beetlebot but (having forgotten which stone does what) he is holding the yellow stone -- he beats the Mobius high-jump record but accomplishes little else. Using the green stone, Sonic crafts a giant flyswatter. "What's The Big Idea?" Kanterovich & Penders/Mawhinney While Rotor works on a top secret project, the rest of the gang recall previous experiments that have gone awry. "Animal Magnetism" Decesare/Mawhinney Robotnik plans to use a giant Magnabot to capture Bunnie and use her as bait to get the other freedom fighters. During an outdoor barbeque, Bunnie (and everything else metal) is suddenly pulled away. Sonic hitches a ride to the Magnabot by grabbing a metal garbage can lid. Sonic then tricks Robotnik into increasing the power and Snively into pointing the Magnabot toward Robotropolis. Rotor coats Bunnie's robotic parts with an anti-magnetism compound to keep it from happening again. #16 [Nov 1994] [Summary by Erich Schulman] "Sonic Under Glass" It appears that Sonic and Sally are tying the knot, having defeated Robotnik once and for all. In reality, Robotnik has lured the freedom fighters to a place called Sleepy Hollow. Once there, they were gassed, put into a sleep, and trapped inside a virtual reality glass dome. As all their fantasies have come true, nobody wants to escape. Uncle Chuck arrives and reveals to Sonic that he is embracing, not Sally, but a broom. Sonic hates to disappoint his friends, who are all so happy, but decides to get back at Robotnik. Sonic gets Robotnik's war machines to reverse course and attack the big guy, so Robotnik reluctantly kills the VR software. Sonic and Sally are reunited, and Sonic concludes that virtual reality is a nice place to visit, but.... "The Man From H.E.D.G.E.H.O.G." Robotnik comes to the conclusion that there is a spy in his midst, since so many of his missions have failed. Thinking that he has found his spy in a mole, he uses the Wheel of Misfortune to randomize his plans to destroy Mobius. On Robotnik's first spin, he lands on "undersea bank heist." Robotnik's lackey's find only an empty vault and the freedom fighters waiting for them. The same thing happens after two more spins. Robotnik finally thinks he has Sonic captured when Sonic and Sally visit Robotnik's casino [Boy, I hope this makes more sense in the comic! DJD], but Sonic narrowly escapes. Belatedly, Robotnik realizes that the Wheel itself was rigged. Sonic-Grams: Aside from now-obsolete announcements, it is stated that Sonic is 15; that Sally is a squirrel (not necessarily a ground squirrel); that Antoine was a donor so that Tails would be able to fly [Yeah, right!] (c.f. "The Mail's About Tails" (#2); that Sonic was just a little slow rescuing Bunnie from the roboticizer ("Rabbit Deployment," #3). On a more useful note, Archie Comics confesses that due to inadequate modelling information, their Sally was a different color from the SatAM version, a situation which has since been rectified. #17 [Dec 1994] "Gorilla Warfare, or, The Apes of Wrath" Kanterovich & Penders/Manak Robotnik travels to Skoal Island and finds one of his original bots: King Gong, a ten-foot tall, 800 lb. gorilla. He sends the big ape to Mobotropolis to attack Sonic. King Gong breaks up a freedom fighters' picnic, but loses interest in Sonic when he sees Sally. With Sally in his grasp, he climbs to the top of a minimall to watch the sunset. The Sonic Spin has no effect on King Gong, so it's on to Plan B: while Tails flies up to rescue Sally, Sonic and Antoine hose him down with banana oil. King Gong slips and falls on top of Robotnik. "First Star I See Tonight: Sally's Crusade, part 1" Kanterovich & Penders/Mawhinney While reminiscing about life as a little girl before Robotnik's takeover, Sally sees something fall from the sky. It turns out to be a shiny metal orb. To be continued. #18 [Jan 1995]: "Wedding Bell Blues" Kanterovich & Penders/Manak Robotnik gets word of Sonic and Sally's impending wedding and plans an attack. "In the Still of the Night" (Sally's Crusade, part 2) Kanterovich & Penders/Mawhinney While trying to determine the nature of the mysterious orb (cf. "First Star....", #17), Sally is called to the bedside of her old mentor, Julayla, just before she dies. They never use the D- word, but it's an affecting story nevertheless. Sonicgram: includes statement that Sonic is 15, and a German fan disses Dave Manak's artwork Sonic: In Your Face #1 [1995] "Sally's Crusade: The Quest" Kanterovich & Penders/Mawhinney The orb is revealed to be a casing surrounding Nicole. Sally, with the others in tow, searches for what turns out to be Julayla's last testament. The significance of this document is spelled out in a "flashforward" at the end of the story. "Mirror Zone" Story and art: Pat Spaziante [debut] An excuse to practice backwards lettering. Sonicgram: Sally's age is given as "about 15." [Note, if you're going to guess a lady's age, guess on the low side ;-) ] "Tails' Tallest Tale" Story and art: Scott Shaw! Tails substitutes for Sonic, putting in an appearance at a con. His exaggerations almost get him into trouble. The return of Shaw!. #19 [Feb 1995]: "Night of a Thousand Sonics" In order to defeat Robotnik's latest scheme, Sonic has to call in as many versions of himself from as many parallel universes as he can. Artwork by Manak for the first half, Mawhinney for the second. Sonicgram: The name of Sally's father is given as "King Acorn" (but see FAQ #5). Scott Fulop hedges on when Knuckles will make an appearance and whose side he'll be on. Again, Sally is identified as a "ground squirrel." Hint is dropped as to a Sonic motion picture in the works. #20 [Mar 1995]: "That's the Spirit" Exposure to an antimatter explosion renders Sonic invisible; Sally and the others [Tails being the exception] believe he is dead. The comedic pacing and Manak's artwork mar what otherwise might have been a very poignant story. Great line (Sonic to Robotnik--who thinks he's dealing with a ghost): "Give Mobius back to the freedom fighters, lose weight and get a hairpiece!" "Deadliest of the Species" [Prologue to the Princess Sally miniseries] While on a sabotage mission, Sally is confronted by someone claiming to be part of a rebel underground. Sonicgram: Once again lists Sally's age as 15. #21 [Apr 1995]: "3 Phases of E.V.E" /Spaziante Robotnik unleashes E.V.E. ["exceptionally versatile evolvoid"] to capture Sonic. As Sonic manages to outsmart E.V.E., it simply adapts to another form to compensate. Sonic lures it to Robotnik's headquarters where, assuming a self-conscious form, E.V.E. determines that it is being held back by its biological inheritance from Sonic and Robotnik [i.e., individual cells used in E.V.E.'s creation]. E.V.E. toasts Robotnik, but thanks to some quick thinking by Sonic--apparently, Sally's influence is rubbing off on him ;-) -- E.V.E. spares Sonic and travels out into space on a journey of self-actualization. Is Robotnik really history? That's the tease--stay tuned. Sonicgram: announcement of the delay in rolling out the Sally miniseries; another special issue (48pp) due out in May. Princess Sally Mini-series #1 [April 1995] Summary by Ron Bauerle "Deadliest of the Species!" written by Mike Kanterovich & Ken Penders, art by Art Mawhinney & Rich Koslowski. Opens with a nice splash page summarizing the struggle so far and describes the main characters (get this: "Antoine is renouned for his military skills" - okayyyy...). Next it recaps Sally's meeting Geoffrey St. John...in StH #20. Sally & Geoffrey are attacked by SWATbots after destroying the facility and manage to beat them off [hey, Ron, let's leave their private lives out of this ;-) ] and exchange some banter in the process (I can't call it friendly but it's not really sarcastic either). They then head back to the camp where some young trainee freedom fighters are waiting for Sally. Geoffrey mistakes them for enemies and jumps a pig (Hamlin) but they're separated by Sally. This establishes some bad blood between Hamlin and Geoffrey that continues all issue. The team proceeds to its next target (an energy substation) and after battling SWATbots and ORBbots manage to destroy it. During the battle Geoffrey saves Hamlin's life but Hamlin still doesn't trust him. That night, when everyone else is asleep, Geoffrey slips away, activates a teleportal, enters some kind of building and descends to its basement where he speaks to a figure in a glass case: Sally!? Also some fan art: two pics of Sally & Bunnie (both NBD), and one of Sally as a dominatrix (!). #22 [May 1995] "The Return" Penders/Spaziante & Harvey M. The story opens with Sonic & Sally MCW (Married with Children; cf. the end of "Sally's Quest" in _In Your Face #1_). Sonic & Sally are out with the kids when, during a lightning storm, an apparition of Robotnik appears and just as suddenly disappears. Have your pencils and scorecards ready to try and follow the remainder of the plot: Robotnik is actually on a satellite talking with Robo-Robotnik from "Night of a Thousand Sonics," (#19), only in this case only the consciousness of Robo-Robotnik (hereinafter "R-R") remains resident. Robotnik convinces R-R to teleport him back to Mobius, where it turns out Snively has activated an alternative Doomesday device which would go off if Robotnik was ever defeated. Robotnik actually deactivates "Operation Wasteland" himself to keep from being ruler over nothing and to have the pleasure of saying to Sonic: "You owe me!" Robotnik and Sonic MWC are declared to be at a stalemate. What about R-R? Who knows? Muddled story saved by Spaziante artwork. "Tails Knighttime Story," Decesare/Manak & John Dagostino As Tails grumps about "get[ting] baby-sat" while Sonic has all the fun and adventures, Sally tells him a bedtime story wherein Sonic is Sir Runalot and Tails is his page who "borrows" his armour one day and who, mistaken for the aforementioned knight, ends up doing battle with Sir Knightmare of Robotannia (guess who?) until the real Sir Runalot saves his...er...tails. Sonicgram: the comics should get a FAQ File, since two letters pepper them with questions (most are answered: "Keep reading." Translation: "we're working on it!"). The cover of Princess Sally #2 in an ad on the same page differs from one which appears on p. 17 of the same issue(!), thus bolstering the "creative differences" theory in Q7. Princess Sally Miniseries #2 [May 1995] "Deadliest of the Species": Part 2 Kanterovich & Penders/Mawhinney (Summary by Erich Schulman): The story opens with a fight between St. John and Hamlin, and Sally gives Hamlin a scolding. To reach the third, undestroyed substation, the freedom fighters use a new (!?) technology: hang gliders. Arlo's hang glider is hit by the defenses and he is wounded in action; Penelope volunteers to stay with him. Once inside, Sally and St. John are attacked by an octopod, and everyone barely manages to escape the explosions. Upon leaving, they find that Arlo and Penelope are gone. Sally says they will return to camp without them (to which Hamlin is opposed). Did you have your doubts about St. John? That night, St. John replaces Sally with a lookalike robot and delivers the real Sally to Robotnik. Fan mail (singular; only one letter appears): Will Sonic and Sally marry? "Could be." Has Sally met Knuckles? She will in a forthcoming 48-page S&K special. Does Sally have a mother, and if so what does she look like? "Of course...her origin may yet be told." Or [shameless plug] you can read about it in "Bloodlines" in the fanfic section of Rotor's homepage. #23 [Jun 1995] "Ivo Robotnik, Freedom Fighter" Decesare/Manak Sonic, Sally, Rotor, Tails, Robotnik and Snively are all captured by Car-Heem, a giant alien who wants to study them. In order to save Robotnik from "disposal," Sonic convinces Car-Heem that they are interdependent species, a novelty to the autonomous Car-Heem. Thanks to a diversion by Sonic, the others escape their confinement in a craft of Robotnik's design. Although Robotnik blows Car-Heem and Sonic out of Car-Heem's spacecraft's airlock, Rotor retrieves them. In gratitude, Car-Heem returns everyone to Mobius and Rotor, inspired, releases the inhabitants of his ant farm [Heavy Message]. There's also a really bad pun which I'm not going to reveal. Do-It-Yourself Sonic Contest winners announced. "Vol-ANT-teer" Decesare/Manak Antoine ventures into Robotropolis alone to retrieve Tails' lost backpack with a power ring in it. Bunnie shadows him just in case. Surprising last panel gives the impression that Antoine isn't exactly clueless. Sonicgram: Further indication that Knuckles will put in an appearance in the next Sonic special, though no hint as to his allegiance; look for an appearance by Knack the Weasel [c.f., the Triple Trouble game] in the same issue. Sally Miniseries #3 [June 1995] "Deadliest of the Species, Part III" Kanterovich & Penders/Mawhinney (Summary: James Firmiss) (Recap of parts 0, 1 and 2 omitted) Sally, Hamlin and Dylan are fighting their way into Robotropolis with paint guns and grenades (blinding SWATbots). Dylan believes that attacking at half strength isn't wise, yet they press on. Hamlin nearly falls from a collapsing catwalk but Sally rescues him. They eventually reach their objective, break down the doors and find...Robotnik, St. John and Sally (in the container). Hamlin believes Geoffrey to be a traitor so he jumps him. Sally breaks it up and says she and St. John are on the same side. Robotnic reveals that Sally is an auto-automaton, a perfect robot duplicate, and that there was no weakness in the defense system. His master plan is to replace key members of the freedom fighters--we see auto-automatons of Sonic and Tails being built. Robotnik also plans to roboticize the Sally delivered to him by St. John. Robotnik begins the roboticization process but the chamber blows up because a "feedback loop" has occurred. Something which is impossible unless...he were trying to roboticize a robot! The real Sally was with Dylan and Hamlin. Sally tries to 'arrest' Robotnik, but large StealthBots emerge from the walls and capture the freedom fighters. Note: you could see the outlines of the StealthBots 5 pages back. St. John pushes a button on a remote control and a vehicle burrows its way up through the floor. Out pop Penelope, Arlo and three "moles". They help free Sally, Dylan and Hamlin (more paint guns). Robotnik manages to activate a 30-second self-destruct and disappears down an escape chute. Sally and the others all head for the vehicle maintenance area and grab saucer-shaped air cars (from Hanger 18! X-P ) and get out with no time to spare. With everyone back at the base, Hamlin, Penelope, Arlo and Dylan are promoted to full-fledged freedom fighters. Sally tries to convince Geoffrey to come to Knothole but he declines in order to rejoin the Rebel Underground. He does engage Sally in some serious lip-locking before they part. If you're not confused yet, here's a run-down of the plot- twists, as Sally explains them at the end: The FIRST Sally switch occurred right at the beginning of Part 1 shortly after meeting St. John. St. John really was the leader of the "Rebel Underground" and acted as a double agent in order to gain Robotnik's trust and activate the robot double prematurely in order to find out what its plans were. It was the auto-automaton Sally that helped attack the 2d and 3d substations. It was such a good copy that it could give orders, make hard choices, and even grieve for missing comrades. But did you notice the two clues that would have tipped you off that this was an automated Sally: 1. "Auto" Sally wore a purple vest instead of a blue one. 2. "Auto" Sally referred to Geoffrey by his first name, while the real Sally always called him "Mr. St. John." The SECOND Sally switch occurred in Part II, when Robotnik (and the reader) was supposed to think that Sally was being replaced by a robot double. And what about Arlo and Penelope? They were taken away by the moles from the literal Rebel UNDERGROUND. The Rebel Underground was also supposed to be backup in case anything unexpected happened. "This is definitely one of the most complicated stories Archie's Sonic group has ever come up with. Congrats...." JF SallyGram: Horace Hawkins (14) wishes Sally a Happy Valentine's Day, and expresses the desire to be her boyfriend. LET YOUR VOICE BE HEARD! Scott Fulop (Editor) asks if there is interest in a MONTHLY Sally comic. If so, send a postcard with the following: Give me Princess Sally. Monthly. NOW!!! to: SallyGrams c/o Archie Comic Publishing 325 Fayette Avenue Mamaroneck, NY 10543 #24 [Jul 1995] "When Hedgehogs Collide" (in 4 parts) Script: Mike Kanterovich & Ken Penders Art: Dave Manak (Parts 1 and 2); Art Mawhinney & Rich Koslowski (Parts 3 and 4) Part 1 is taken up witnessing antisocial behavior on the part of Sonic, Sally, Tails, Antoine and Rotor. Part 2 is the exposition as to what's happening: Evil Sonic from "The Good, The Bad and the Hedgehog" [Sonic #11] (hereinafter referred to as "the Antisonic," as in "the Antichrist") is looking for some action, so he rounds up the "gang" consisting of the Antisally, the Antitails, the Antirotor and the Antiantoine. They take the Cosmic Interstate to Mobius, dress like their counterparts and begin doing some damage. So where have the Good Guys been all this time? Sonic, Tails and Antoine had been sent by Rotor into "negative reality" though they were unable to penetrate "the Zone of Silence" (aka, The Void) where Sally's father is being held. Sally's been out on a mission with the trainees (cf. the Sally miniseries). Everyone arrives back in time to incur the wrath of their fellow Mobians. In disguise, they come upon the gang about to terrorize some more Mobians. The first fight turns into a draw until Sally realizes that there's no way they can defeat their other selves, who would be able to anticipate their strategies. So it's "Change partners!" as play is resumed: Sonic punches out the Antisally (this frame alone is worth the price of admission!), Sally defeats the Antiantoine, Antoine stops the Antirotor, Rotor defeats the Antitails, and Tails gets the better of the Antisonic. Since the Antisonic got what he came to Mobius for (a fight), the gang agrees to return to their homeworld peacefully. I guess the ol' doppelganger plot device worked so well in Sonic #11 they decided to dust it off and run it past us again. A valiant effort marred by two Plot Holes and a Serious Omission: PH#1: If Sally could figure out that fighting themselves would get them nowhere, wouldn't the Antisally have reached the same conclusion? Then again they might have spent the entire issue second-guessing each other.... ;-) PH#2: On the homeworld of the Antisonic the SWATbots do all the work and "kindly ol' Robotnik is a grade-A wimp!" At least, according to an exposition by the Antisonic. This then leads us to... SO: Where's Bunnie? Despite a "Sonic + Bunnie" graffiti carved into the desk of the Antisonic [along with "Sonic + Sally," "Sonic + Nicole"--THAT I'd like to see!--and "Sonic + Sonic"], Bunnie's legion of fanboys will be disappointed to learn that she doesn't put in an appearance in this comic, either as Bunnie or as the Antibunnie. If indeed Robotnik is more benevolent on the Antisonic's homeworld, does that mean that Bunnie would be intact (i.e., not partially roboticized) there? Interesting question but one that Kanterovich and Penders conveniently sidestepped for the moment. SonicGram: information on two upcoming "special" issues: the 48-page Sonic & Knuckles special will include a solo Knuckles effort and a lead story involving Knuckles' floating island; and the "Silver Anniversary" issue #25 featuring Mecha Sonic from the CD game (artwork by Spaziante). There's a list of "Do-It- Yourself Sonic Contest" winners who have moved and left no forwarding address. Two fan letters to Knuckles, plus word that Tails will have his own miniseries coming out in the fall. Sonic & Knuckles 48 page special [1995] (based on summaries by James Firmiss) "Panic in the Sky!" Kanterovich & Penders/Mawhinney (Part 1), Manak (Part 2) The Mobians living on the western shore of "the Great Continent" [you'd think that Mobians would have come up with another adjective besides "Great": viz.: the Great Forest, the Great Swamp, the Great Unknown, etc. See also the "all-purpose" use of the word _hrair_, or "thousands" by rabbits in Richard Adams' _Watership Down_. But I digress....] are alarmed by the approach of a floating island. Sally and the gang realize that the island is on course for Knothole; Sonic explains to the group (for the first time!?) that he and Tails were on the island a while back and met Knuckles. Antoine flies Sonic and Tails in the turboprop, dodging antiaircraft fire from the underside of the island. After landing on the island, seeing giant mushrooms and avoiding some traps, Sonic falls into one trap and again meets Knuckles. Since this is the second time Sonic has been caught trespassing, Knuckles is about to send him over the edge of the island. Tails tries dropping a rock on Knuckles from above to avoid this from happening, but it ends up that Tails has to rescue both Sonic and Knuckles by airlifting them to safety. It appears that Robotnik is "hijacking" the island by somehow draining the energy from the Chaos Emerald which keeps the island afloat. Already having established a presence on the island, Robotnik has installed weapons on the underside and plans to use the island as a flying fortress to attack Knothole. Knuckles won't allow the island to be used this way; he smashes the Chaos Emerald. With the island losing altitude, Robotnik abandons it, expecting that it'll still smash into Knothole (though how he suddenly knows of Knothole's location is unclear). But Knuckles replaces the "real" Chaos Emerald just in time--I'd tell you how he switched it with a phony one which was the one he broke, but I don't understand it either. Knuckles turns down an invitation to join the Knothole gang; part of his stewardship of the island now involves disarming it since Robotnik is gone. "Fire Drill" Penders/Art: Jon D'Agostino Knuckles investigates an explosion on the island, suspecting that it's Sonic. Catching just a glimpse of an intruder, he follows him to places unfamiliar even to him(!). As the trail leads off the edge of the island, he still thinks it's Sonic; however, we catch a glimpse of a shadowy presence still on the island. "Lord of the Floating Island" Penders/Harvey Mercadoocasio While patroling the island on a windy day, he spots a lost joey (baby kangaroo) names Bengy. The kid asks Knuckles to bring back the sky; Knuckles explains that there's an eclipse in progress and that's what's causing the winds. They avoid a pack of (biped) dingoes as Knuckles goes into further exposition about the island-- how it's a paradise which some parties (Sonic and Robotnik) want to change. They eventually find Bengy's mom. Knuckles' exit line: "This is my island! And I live to protect and serve!" The entire story appears to exist to supply needed exposition and to nudge Knuckles closer to the Good Guy category. No SonicGrams, but announcements: Sonic #25 will have a silver ink cover and feature Mecha Sonic; dated August '95. Also slated for that month: a Sonic Triple Trouble 48-page special featuring Nack the Weasel; it will also include a Sonic v. Knuckles story, a Knuckles solo story, and a Tails solo story. Another 48-page special -- Knuckles Chaotix -- is schedules for November '95. Solo Knuckles stories will appear in Sonics #31-33 (Feb-Apr '96) and a Knuckles 3-parter will begin Jan '96. #25 [Aug 1995] "Go Ahead...Mecha My Day" (the only story in this issue) Story: Mike Gallagher Art: Pat Spaziante based on summary by James Firmiss In a bow to the CD game, the story focuses on the freedom fighters' discovery of the Collision Chaos Zone, a "zone portal." Robotnik tries to lure Sonic into the zone portal by kidnapping his #1 fan: Amy Rose, the pink hedgehog (remember her?). Based on her dialogue on page 14, I'd describe her in Foghorn Leghorn terms: "Nice kid, but about as sharp as a sack full of wet mice." Tails investigates from the air and is captured instead. To rescue both Amy and Tails, Sonic must race through the new zones and do battle with Robotnik's Mecha-Sonic. Spaziante's artwork of Sally in this issue is surprising, in that her shape has gotten...well, more shapely. I don't remember her having that much of a bustline in issue #21! Still no SonicGrams; another repeat announcement of the Triple Trouble and Chaotix specials, as well as the Knuckles and Tails miniseries. Also staff artwork. #26 [Sep 1995] "Way, Way Past Cool" Script: A. Decesare; Pencil: D. Manak; Ink: J. D'Agostino Sonic, Tails, Sally, Rotor and Antoine find themselves in a snowstorm...in the middle of summer. Of course it's a plot by Dr. Robotnik: after lowering the temperature on Mobius, he will use infrared heat sensors to locate the warm-blooded freedom fighters. Sonic and the gang take shelter (such as it is) in a cave, where they encounter a group of polar Mobians--they were trapped down south when Robotnik took over and have lived in hiding ever since. After initially attacking the Weather Annihilator with a snowball-loaded catapult, the Knothole gang is captured by Snively. The polar Mobians, however, come to their aid and Sonic destroys the Annihilator. The polar Mobians return north to their home, inspired to put up more of a resistance. This story has inspired renewed argument over species identification since one of the polar Mobians [Erma, presumably an ermine] looks something like Sally. However, Erma doesn't have the white winter coat associated with a true ermine, nor is her tail long and tipped with black, nor is her body long and slender. But, hey, we're talking design by Manak here! Wadja expect? Additional problems/flamebait: Where did the catapult come from? If Sally decided not to wear a vest because of the summer heat, how come she's still got her boots on? [Then again, I'm convinced that furries are Not Clear On The Concept when it comes to clothing]. And why is Sonic shown skittering across the surface of a river in the story's opening when the character guide to Sonic clearly states that Sonic is a non-swimmer and would ordinarily avoid water? Fan art "Fortified" Story: A. Decesare; Pencil: A. Mawhinney; Ink: R. Koslowski The Knothole gang (the cast of the above story PLUS Bunnie!) are in the mountains, trying to keep ahead of Robotnik--not easy, since Sonic has a sprained ankle. Bunnie discovers an old fort, complete with an old muzzle-loading cannon and a blacksmith's forge. Robotnik's "bus" crashes into the fort, only to confront Bunnie, suited up in improvised body armour. She takes out Robotnik's SWATbots and maneuvers the bus to crash through the fort wall and roll back down the mountain. FINALLY an appearance by Bunnie! [One has to wonder whether her (largely out-of-the-way) role in "Vol-Ant-eer" in Sonic #23 even counts as an appearance.] Mawhinney, though, seems to draw her a little on the "squashed" side. After Spaziante's rendering of Sally in Sonic #25, I wonder how *he'd* draw Bunnie. SonicGrams: In-house humor featuring Fulop, Mendez, Pepitone and Pauley [DJD: Leave it at the water cooler, guys!]. Hint that the upcoming StH Triple Trouble special issue will feature Tails in a Sea Fox submarine solo story, by way of warming up for the Happy Fun Fox miniseries in the fall. Question about why the SWATbots carrying out Operation Wasteland in Sonic #22 went after Robotnik and Snively [DJD: What part of "total destruction" don't you understand?]; a fan from Canada complains about Bunnie's seldom appearing in the comics [DJD: Hear! Hear!]; fan letter for Tails from Cleveland. Also cover art for #27 and the Triple Trouble special. #27 [Oct 1995] "A Scrambled Hedgehog" Story: Ken Penders/Art: Art Mawhinney While retrieving a message in Robotropolis, Sonic collides with a SWATbot with sufficient force to knock himself out. Coming to in Robotnik's headquarters, Sonic displays all the symptom [singular] of that favorite condition of writers everywhere: amnesia. Robotnik passes himself off as Sonic mentor and advisor. After working out on some Freedom Fighter dummies left over from the Princess Sally miniseries, and after having had a microtransmitter planted on his person, Sonic is sent to Knothole to "observe the underground terrorist group." Sonic enters a secret tunnel entrance to Knothole, but Rotor's security system detects the bug. Rotor tries everything he can to stop Sonic before he can get out of the tunnel, but Sonic spins his way out to the surface and enters Knothole, apparently under the impression that his orders are to combat rather than observe. To be continued. At least the artwork didn't go schizo, switching from Mawhinney to Manak halfway through. Anyone else get the reference to the Patrick McGoohan cult TV classic, "The Prisoner," on page 3? Sonic Art: I know he's only 6, but Mitchell Resk's drawing of Sonic makes him look like he's wearing a diaper. Triple Trouble Coming Attractions Gallagher/Manak Essentially a two-page ad for the upcoming issue. Weirdest panel is the one inviting readers to CHECK OUT PRINCESS SALLY IN A HOT PINK STRING BIKINI, just before Sally nixes the idea. And this is the same Sally who went through the first season on TV wearing nothing in the world but a pair of boots! Apparently, Gallagher is also Not Clear On The Concept when it comes to clothing and furries. Oh well, there are always the WEB site pictures.... Sonic Grams: PUH-LEEEZE lose the office humor; it's taking up valuable space that could be used by "Noted From The Net" [whatever happened to that idea?]. Recaps the contents of the Triple Trouble issue, plus indicates that #28 will include the preamble to the Tails miniseries. Someone asks about Sonic's sneakers; Robotnik gets a fan letter; and someone asks the names of Sonic & Sally's offspring from #22. Game Gear Adaptation #1 [Oct 1995] Triple Trouble issue "Tttriple Tttrouble!!!" Story: Mike Gallagher/Art: Dave Manak Robotnik miscalculates when trying to exploit a Chaos Emerald as a power source, and the stone splits into two fragments. One half lands in the Great Forest where a new set of action zones is created. The other half lands on Knuckles' floating island where it starts burrowing into a mountain. Knuckles investigates but is hit on the head by a rock and loses consciousness. As for Sonic, he enters the new zones to retrieve the shard, but as soon as he does so he's knocked out by Knack the Weasel. As for Knuckles, he comes to in a cave surrounded by a group of Ancient Walkers--cave-dwellers wearing masks. After some exposition about how if the half emerald should come in contact with the Floating Island's emerald it'll blow the place apart, Knuckles is returned to the surface in time to trash Knack, who happens to have Sonic in the trunk of his vehicle. Sonic & Knuckles start to resume their old grudge match when Robotnik contacts Knack in order to keep the plot moving. Sonic & Knuckles reunite the Emerald which disappears; they then part company after exchanging insincerities and mutual distrust. As for the emerald, it reappears in the possession of the Ancient Walkers. "Submersible Rehearsal" Story: Gallagher/Art: Art Mawhinney Tails' joy as Rotor finishes work on The Sea Fox is punctured when he learns that Sally has instructed Rotor not to put any oil in the sub (fuel or lubricating? It doesn't say). Tails then learns that Robotnik has an octobot terrorizing sea creatures; this information comes from an oil-soaked gull. Draining the oil from the gull to power the Sea Fox, Tails defeats the octobot and destroys the underwater robot factory. This is all prelude to the Tails miniseries--a full-page ad shows Spaziante cover designs, but we all remember what happened to the cover designs for the Princess Sally miniseries, don't we? "First Contact" Story & Art: Ken Penders Back on the floating island, Knuckles interrupts a tussle with Vector to investigate what he thinks is a Robotnik invasion attempt. But it turns out he's being taunted (as in "Fire Drill" in Sonic & Knuckles #1) by someone whose name turns out to be Archimedes. He leads Knuckles to the Chaos Chamber where he tells Knuckles that "only when you can find me will we know that you are capable of seeing the answer within the question." The solution promised in the upcoming Knuckles Chaotix issue. #28 [Nov 1995] "Saturday Noght's Alright For A Fight" [3 parts] Story: Ken Penders/Art: Art Mawhinney Having penetrated into the Knothole control center, Sonic basically begins beating up on everyone in sight. This includes the ladies--he puts Sally in a headlock, and escapes from a leg scissors by Bunnie. Eventually (by the end of Part 2) Sonic is knocked out, the bug implanted on him discovered, he recovers from his amnesia and the plot resolved. Sonic Art "Growing Pains", Part 1 Story: Mike Gallagher/Art: Dave Manak Tails is still upset at Sonic for having "slapped [him] around" in the previous story, and resentful of Sally for keeping the Sea Fox in dry dock as a "floating crib." Thanks to the oil he got from the gull in "Submersible Rehearsal" (the Triple Trouble special), he sets out on his own. Coming upon an uncharted island, he comes to the rescue of Fiona, a captive female fox, and instantly falls in love with her. Fiona, however, is an automaton set up as bait by Robotnik. Tails is trapped by Fiona, and Fiona herself starts the process of roboticizing Tails [to be continued]. SonicGrams: More info about the Tails miniseries coming up -- apparently, the actions moves to "Downunda," the Mobian equivalent of Australia; Freddy Mendez has moved on to other editorial work within Archie Comics; two letters to Sonic elicit replies about the Tails miniseries, and the information that Sonic is 15; and one letter to Sally asks how to be a freedom fighter (I think actually being on Mobius would be a plus). #29 [Dec 1995] [Better double-bag this one, gang; it's a keeper for a number of reasons. DJD] Cover by Spaziante -- this stunning work alone deserves recognition! Not as powerful as the roboticization of Sally sequence in "Sonic's Nightmare" but close enough. "Steel-belted Sally" (three parts) Story: Angelo Decesare/Art: Art Mawhinney After a one-page introduction to Dulcy (which was more than she got when she debuted in the second season), we move on to the story. Sonic finds a "portable deroboticizer"(!!!) in a crashed hover unit. So Rotor takes it apart, figures out how it works, begins mass-producing them, the residents of Mobius are deroboticized and they drive Robotnik off the planet. Wrong answer! Instead, Sally allows herself to be captured by Robotnik and roboticized, trusting in a small disc that looks like a battery for a calculator that's supposed to prevent her mind from coming under Robotnik's influence after being roboticized. Unfortunately, the "neuro-overrider" falls off and Sally is totally transformed. As the others are on the verge of being roboticized by Robo-Sally, Dulcy shows up and uses the portable deroboticizer (remember THAT plot device?) to restore Sally and foil Robotnik. Good artwork by Mawhinney, but readers have been quick to point out the flaws in the plot of the story. Why NOT use the portable deroboticizer to restore Bunnie, or even Uncle Chuck (scheduled to appear in issue #30)? After it's used on Sally it's never heard of again; shabby treatment for a pivotal device. And why wasn't the neuro-overrider more securely fastened to Sally? They couldn't find a bobby pin? They never heard of super glue? They couldn't take the time to surgically implant the thing? And finally, whose idea was it at Archie Comics to have Bunnie wearing metallic panties? Her legion of fanboys are glad she's putting in more of an appearance, but how about keeping her on-model? Sonic Art: Reid Price's drawing of the girls elicited some comment because of the tattoos and pierced ears. Still a pale imitation of the erotic "Bambioids" of Jerry Collins which are at ftp://avatar.snc.edu/pub/furry/images/downloads/j/jc[001 through 108].gif. Of this collection I am in awe. "Growing Pains, Part 2" Story: Mike Gallagher/Art: Dave Manak When we last left Tails, he had been betrayed by his new girlfriend, Fiona, who turned out to be one of Robotnik's automatons. Tails has just been consigned to the desert island's roboticizer. Fasten your safety belts, return seats and tray tables to their upright position and assume the crash landing position: a promising story is about to go down in flames.... The roboticizer explodes because of "fur from [Tails'] tails." Wonder why this problem never came up when Robotnik was roboticizing other furries; next time, Ivo, don't put your prisoners in the air intake. Fiona attacks Tails, who is then almost crushed boa-style by one of Robotnik's palm trees. Fiona attacks again and attemps to drown Tails in the shallows. However, before she can finish the job she grinds to a halt. Apparently she is able to rust solid in a matter of seconds. Tails should have noticed this little problem when he and Fiona were running along the beach during the romantic interlude on page 5 of Part 1, but maybe Tails and Gallagher both learned story structure and continuity from the same teacher. While Tails mourns his lost (or at least immobilized) love in unbelievably heavy-handed prose, Robotnik escapes. Tails may be blue, but he's also green: he starts picking up the trash along the beach. This is how he discovers "absolute proof" that O.J. Simpson murdered Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman...oops, wrong story. What he discovers is "absolute proof" of a "satellite operation functioning on the other side of Mobius." Same level of credibility, IMHO. Having been handed the premise of his miniseries on a silver plate without any connection whatever to the two-parter he just endured, Tails is off on his solo adventure. This isn't Shakespeare, Heaven only knows...it isn't even Bacon, but Tails' acting in this story is 100% ham! In writing for comics you have to take shortcuts, and sometimes you have to put massive amounts of plot development into a couple of word balloons. "Growing Pains", however, manages to wade through 15 pages before setting up the plot of the miniseries on the very last page. Which wouldn't be so unforgivable if the dialogue that preceeded it weren't so extravagent. "I'll put you here as a monument to my lost youth...but I'll make him repair you and we'll be together again, my love!" Typical 10-year-old, right? OK, when did you totally give up on this story? I managed to hang in until page 7. When I got to the line "Robotnik created the perfect woman, but forgot to waterproof her!", I knew this was the cue for Sonic's line: "I think I shall hurl!" What galls me is the promise with which the story began. It's easy to tell the Trekkers in the audience because after Part 1 they've been rooting for Fiona to switch allegiances and join up with Tails (call it the Mr. Data Effect). The questions raised by Part 1 were full of promise: Will Fiona cross over and join the Freedom Fighters? Did Tails get to second base with Fiona during their romantic interlude? The readers were ready to grant Gallagher and Manak a lot of latitude in the beginning, but the second part was a total bringdown. The traps were unbelievable, Fiona was written out of the story too easily, and Tails was stuck with some of the most melodramatic lines this side of Yiddish theater. And by the last page you had the sense of "Forget it, let's get on to the miniseries." With more thought to the story, "Growing Pains" could have been a decent miniseries in its own right, ending with a Tails whose character has actually grown by the end of the story. It's a bad sign when the readers take the story more seriously than the writer! Sonic Grams: For the last time, guys, LOSE THE OFFICE HUMOR! We buy the product so we can read about Sonic and Tails, not Scott and Paul. Buried in Scott's prose is the news that despite the Spaziante covers, the team who perpetrated "Growing Pains", Gallagher and Manak, will be doing the Tails miniseries! So much for anticipation. Can you say "coherency?" More important, can you DO coherency? November promises Sonic #30 and the return of Uncle Chuck, Tails miniseries #2, and the Knuckles Chaotix special, just in time for your holiday shopping. On to the letters themselves, and these stuck in my craw even more than the flaws in "Growing Pains." First they punt a question on whether Tails is 5 or 10 years old, then they run a letter to Dylan, then they casually mention that Antoine is 18 (without offering any proof that he's older than the rest), and even though they go some ways in explaining the Boomer/Rotor name game they have to deal with a question about Sonic and Robotnik being half-sibs. Two words: PUH-LEEEZE! Tails Miniseries#1 [Dec 1995] "Southern Crossover" -- Part 1 Story: Mike Gallagher; Art: Dave Manak Who's that amusing himself with preadolescent delusions of grandeur? It's Tails, depicting himself as a comic book hero [artwork by Gallagher] while continuing to nurse a grudge against the older freedom fighters, and coming off more and more like an obnoxious little ingrate (sorry, but his character's getting REALLY disagreeable here!). After some exposition for anyone who missed "Growing Pains" Sally shows up; Tails hides his comic art as well as the documentation that was the set-up for this miniseries. Sally tries to make Tails understand why the Sea Fox wasn't filled with oil; Tails, still resentful, casts off at the first opportunity. Meanwhile, Robotnik prepares his blimp to head for Southern Mobius to supply his robo-underboss, Crocbot (I think Sonic would appreciate the use of the word "blimp" in the same sentence as "Robotnik" but anyway....). We're made aware that Crocbot has every intention of eventually overthrowing Robotnik and taking over the whole shooting match himself, with the aid of his Wing Dingoes (impressive bots, stupid name!). Tails, while out on the open sea, notices a shadow being cast on the water by nothing -- it's the blimp, which has been cloaked except for the underside; since the course of the blimp would have taken it over the open seas, who knew? Tails flies in for a closer look but is zapped by two SWATbots. He comes to before hitting the water and created two water spouts to sink the SWATbots. When he tries to reboard the Sea Fox, who should be waiting for him but the octobot from "Submersible Rehearsal" [Triple Trouble special]. It trashes the Sea Fox and pulls Tails underwater. Tails comes to and discovers that though he was on the verge of drowning he was rescued by several underwater freedom fighters: Bottlenose, a dolphin; Ray, a manta; P.B., a jellyfish X-P; an unnamed giant clam; and Fluke, a blue whale. With the Sea Fox totalled, Fluke gives Tails a ride to Doununda. To be continued. De-Tails (letters): Most noteworthy item was a response to a question about Tails' parents: "You'll eventually find...out [about Tails' parents] in Sonic's comic book." It appears that a Tails origin and/or reunion story is in the works. #30 [Jan 1996] "The Return of Uncle Chuck" Story: Angelo Decesare; Art: Art Mawhinney After two pages of Sonic's reminiscing about Uncle Chuck, we dive into the plot. Robotnik and Snively are preparing to test a "transdimensional transporter" [hereinafter "T2"], and are about to use Uncle Chuck as a test subject. Something goes wrong (though John Johnston suggests in his review that Snively had this planned all along) and Robotnik ends up trapped in the Void. While Snively goes off to show Robotnik how to properly crush a rebellion, there is an unforseen consequence of the accident: Uncle Chuck regains his consciousness and will. Quick cut to Uncle Chuck's deserted chili dog stand where Sonic just happens to be mooning about Uncle Chuck, and where Uncle Chuck just happens to pop up. Before there can be a tearful reunion, quick cut to Knothole some time later where Uncle Chuck could apparently think of nothing better to do than whomp up a batch of chili dogs for the gang before warning them about Snively. Uncle Chuck returns to Robotropolis, where he steals plans Snively has drawn up to mount a T2 on the nose of an aircraft. Sonic and Uncle Chuck go after the plane, but Sonic is (for lack of a better word) voided. Snively, with Sonic held as a captive audience, then wastes a sizable chunk of the Great Forest before he's shot at from another aircraft, this one piloted by Uncle Chuck. Snively is all set to destroy the entire planet out of either spite or bad writing when Robotnik drops in on him...literally. Seems Uncle Chuck got him out of the Void in some unspecified way [Can you say "Deus ex machina?" I knew you could], and returned him to Mobius on condition that Robotnik not harm the freedom fighters. The cookout resumes. This little story has some BIG problems, especially when compared with the "Sonic Conversion" episode. In the latter, Uncle Chuck's "restoration" is not just an accident or the byproduct of an accident. His building of the holographic diarama of Mobius helped establish his scientific credentials; in this story (as well as the comics in general) he almost comes off as a glorified short- order cook. Worst of all, there is NO SPACE AT ALL devoted to Sonic and Uncle Chuck's reunion despite so much set-up. Any emotional impact has been totally sacrificed. IMHO, a comic adaptation of "Sonic Conversion" would have been preferable; it would have also given Mawhinney a chance to draw "the Bunnie bod" in its entirety, though showing Bunnie in profile at the top of page 8 is less than flattering. "Who Keeps Stealing My Chaos Emeralds?" Story: Paul Castiglia; Art: Pat Spaziante In order to further safeguard some Chaos Emeralds from a thieving "anteater", Robotnik sends Coconuts to set some traps on an island base. The traps are pure Chuck Jones-Roadrunner stuff (and Castiglia does nothing to hide the allusion) and Coconuts comes off worse than the shadowy biped "anteater" who (it is revealed in the last panel) is Bunnie, making her first appearance as a Spaziante subject. Except for some severe foreshortening of her left arm, her depiction should please her fanboys; as for keeping her "on model" [see discussion of #29], Spaziante literally skirts the issue. Sonic Art Knuckles' Chaotix Sneak Peek: 2-page splash/tease. Haven't played the game, but I seriously question the existence of Renfield the Rodent (who looks too much like a Chicago alderman to suit me). Sonic Grams: Different artist [Freddy Mendez], same lame office humor. One page of plugs, which includes the information that Geoffrey St. John will resurface in Sonic #31, and the return of Mecha Sonic as part of the Chaotix special issue. Also, in answer to several questions in a letter, the news that Amy Rose will be reappearing at some point. Knuckles' Chaotix #1 [n/d] "The Chaos Effect" (three parts) Story: Mike Kanterovich & Ken Penders; Art: Art Mawhinney After a nice one-page splash of Knuckles on the floating island, we move on to the plot. All the freedom fighters on Mobius, it seems, have been invited to attend some sort of amusement part on the island (which begs two important questions: How did they get their invites?, and How did they get to the island?). The host, Renfield T. Rodent, escorts Sonic and the Knothole gang into the hall of mirrors which is, of course, a trap: everyone is sucked into an alternate dimension through the mirrors except for Knuckles, and his abilities have been compromised. Three guesses who's behind it all, and the first two don't count. Part 2 is basically an introduction to the Chaotix -- the collective name for the 32-X game characters: Charmy Bee, Espio Chameleon, Vector Crocodile, Mighty Armadillo, and the robots Heavy and Bomb. Perhaps the look was dictated by the game, but Charmy, Espio and Mighty look way too much like Sonic wearing a costume. Anyway, armed with a cache of power gems, they prepare to do battle. After starting all the amusement park rides at once to get Robotnik's attention, the Chaotix find themselves up against Mecha-Sonic. Mecha-Sonic attempts to morph into a giant Hyper- Knuckles, but the real Knuckles uses a power gem to even the odds. In the ensuing clash of the titans, the mirrors in the Hall are smashed and the freedom fighters released. Robotnik makes his escape, leaving Renfield to be arrested by some Muppets (I'm sorry, but that's what they look like!). Knuckles and the Chaotix decline an offer to join the freedom fighters. Knuckles Art "Tag! You're It" Story: Ken Penders; Art: Harvo The members of the Chaotix play tag for 5 pages. That's it. Except for the appearance of some mysterious insect on the last page, that's all there is to the plot! If I were a tree, I'd be insulted at being chopped down and pulped to yield the paper for this! "The Hunt Is On!" Story and Art: Ken Penders: Looks like Archimedes is screwing around with Knuckles and his friends again. The Chaotix are captured by story's end as Knuckles is taunted with the chioce of saving his friends or saving his world. To be continued. Sonic #31 [Feb 1996] "A Robot Rides The Rails" (3 parts) Story and Art: Ken Penders This is Ken Penders' debut at drawing the Sonic characters, and some fans have complained about the artwork, especially in terms of modeling and facial expressions. Still, Penders ends up taking the reader on a pretty wild ride.... Sally jumps a moving train carrying a Dynamac 3000, Robotnik's latest creation. On board, who should she run into but Geoffrey St. John, who with some other commandos are attempting to intercept Dynamac. Their attempt to stop the train, however, only awakens Dynamac. Sonic is airlifted to the train in time to witness Dynamac begin morphing. Nicole informs the group that Dynamac can adapt and react to attacks but cannot anticipate; she also reveals how Dynamac can be deactivated. It takes a bit of doing, including Rotor flying interference in a jet aircraft, but Dynamac gets blasted. Sonic is none too pleased with Geoffrey's farewell to Sally, and considers playing the jealousy card himself. Whatever faults Penders may have as an artist (and these could be smoothed out with practice), he's written a fairly gripping action yarn, though in some ways it feels wrong. More suited to James Bond than Sonic the Hedgehog. And Nicole's "personality" is going off in a wrong direction as well. Still, an entertaining effort. "Lost and Found: Part 1" Story: Mike Kanterovich and Ken Penders; Art: Ken Penders This is supposed to be the beginning of the sequel to "The Hunt Is On" from the Chaotix special. It goes on for 2 pages. TWO LOUSY PAGES! Except for a dropped clue [the words "Grand Conserve"], this may as well have been an ad for the real beginning of "Lost and Found" in Sonic #32! What a waste! "Tundra Road: Part 1" Story: Mike Gallagher; Art: Art Mawhinney Responding to a call for help from his mother(!!), Rotor pilots his bathysphere (which looks like a submarine to me!) to the Frozen North Sea [good thing he didn't think to ask Tails for the use of the Sea Fox, since it was scuttled in Tails #1]. The inclusion of an "audience participation" maze in one panel is a dead giveaway that this story is being pitched to the rugrat readership. Rotor arrives home to find his Mom and little brother Skeeter acting like zombies. They and every other walrus on the ice floe (why am I reminded of all those Far Side cartoons that featured look-alike penguins?) proceed into an ice cave to watch Robotnik on a big screen TV. The Big Guy has abandoned his plan to melt the polar caps, opting instead for a plan to freeze all life on Mobius. Rotor, not having been affected by a "neuron bomb" that made the walrus herd susceptible to Robotnik's broadcasts, tries to escape but is hit with a club by a SWATbot and falls into the sea. To be continued. Sonic-Grams: Dawn Spaziante, Pat's sister, is working at Archie and puts in an appearance in the office humor section. Hey, Scott, I'm from Chicago -- you don't have to explain nepotism to me! Major news: Spaziante and Harvo will be tackling a Knuckles miniseries, with story by Kanterovich and Penders. In order to accomodate them, the roll-out of the miniseries has been delayed until April '96. Isn't this kinda like what happened to the Princess Sally miniseries? Like Leo Durocher said, it's *deja vu* all over again! Two of the three letters concern themselves with game matters; in response to the other, Sonic only goes as far as admitting that he's "in like" with Sally, and states that the guess that Archimedes is Knuckles' father is "real close!" Cute portrait of Sally on that page, BTW. #32 [March 1996] Cover art: Pat Spaziante seems to be making his mark as a cover artist, and a dynamic one at that. And he continues to push the outside of the envelope in his drawings of Sally. Talk about a tail to astonish....! "Blast From The Past" (3 parts) Story: Angelo DeCesare/Art: Art Mawhinney The Knothole Freedom Fighters are somewhere in the mountains when they're attacked by SWATbots. One of them gets off a laser shot that severs the rope that Sally has been climbing. She begins to fall to her doom.... and this is just the first panel! Tails catches Sally on the fly as the freedom fighters make their escape. However, they run into other SWATbots with a robodog...which just happens to be Sonic's old pet, Muttski. However, the impending attack is broken off by Uncle Chuck using a device that looks like a remote control for a toy car. Antoine then tumbles into a gorge where he discovers... I'm sorry, but Mawhinney's talent totally fails to make his rendition of a frozen prehistoric "Mobian bear" very convincing--especially when compared with his rendition of a polar bear later in this issue. The two don't look anything alike. The prehistoric bear (dubbed "Mobie" by Tails) looks more like a hulked-out version of that obnoxious animal from the Honeycomb cereal commercials on TV (note to overseas readers who don't get American TV: you're not missing a thing!). Rotor suggests that they take Mobie back to Knothole to revive him. Sonic accidentally causes a speedup in the thawing process and Mobie promptly begins running amok. Bunnie trees Mobie until he calms down. Anti-Mobie sentiment begins to grow (Antoine: "He is ze librarian!" Sally : "I think you mean 'barbarian,' Antoine." Just for the record I'M the librarian, and I have the Master's degree in library science to prove it! But enough about me....). Bunnie, however, tries using pictures to communicate with Mobie; since he was holding a paint brush in one hand when he was found, she thinks he may have an artistic side. Mobie takes one look at the group drawing of Bunnie's, has a dim memory of his own family unit, and runs away from Knothole to look for them. Sonic gives chase, reluctantly. Finding Mobie by a nearby mountain surrounded by SWATbots, Sonic comes to his rescue. Mobie returns the favor when Sonic manages to knock himself out and almost gets chomped by Muttski. Snoic has to do some quick drawing in the dirt before Mobie tries taking Muttski apart. The story is wrapped up in short order: Muttski's mind is restored and Mobie is dropped off in a Mobian jungle. Pretty good action yarn hampered by an unbelievable "cave bear." I suppose by making bears the sapient species instead of primates, evolution on Mobius took a different turn. But I'll leave that to the theoreticians on the list -- I'm a Mobian creationist myself ;-) . "Prisoners" Story: Mike Kanterovich & Ken Penders/Art: Ken Penders Yet another 2-page installment in the Chinese water torture that is being passed off as a Knuckles story. Espio, Charmy, Mighty and Vector are trapped somewhere and encounter a shadowy figure wearing the same digger-style hat as Knack the Weasel. "Tundra Road" Part 2 Story: Mike Gallagher/Art: Art Mawhinney We left Rotor sinking to his doom in the waters of the North Sea. One other fan has summed up the situation best: we know Rotor will be saved; the question is, will his rescue be as contrived as Tails' rescue from the roboticizer in "Growing Pains, Part 2"? As it turns out, Rotor is indeed saved by two of the polar Mobians left over from "Way Way Past Cool" (Sonic #26): Sealia the seal (who didn't have any lines the first time but who has now acquired a copy of Antoine's dimestore French accent) and Augustus the polar bear. Using a literal Trojan horse gambit, Rotor and the two polar Mobians invade the ice cave where the walrus herd is still gathered, but Robotnik orders the brainwashed herd to destroy Rotor. The polar Mobians separate Rotor from the herd by setting the herd adrift on an ice floe. Rotor vows to return to release the herd from Robotnik's influence...if the zombified herd doesn't die of starvation in the meantime. Oh well, at least Manak took a break from doing the artwork. Sonic grams: same old office humor. Hype for Super Sonic v. Hyper-Knuckles special issue (story by Gallagher *ack!*/art by Mawhinney). One letter concerns Sonic's sneakers and there's some teasing of Knuckles' story in issues 33-36. Sonic #33 [April 1996] Cover art by Spaziante has Sonic up to his ankles and elbows in...well, it sure LOOKS biological! "Let's Get Small" (in 3 parts) Story: Mike Gallagher; Art: Dave Manak WARNING: There's no way I can describe this story without tipping Gallagher's hand and quoting some truly awful puns he's worked into the script. To compensate, I will be rating some of the puns in the course of this review, using the following guidelines: - Bad -- Way Past Bad --- I Think I Shall Hurl ---- A Capital Offence on Mobius So, on with the fun 'n' games. Sonic returns to Knothole from a patrol to find the place almost deserted. It turns out that everybody is laid up with a microbionic infection introduced into their food supply by Robotnik. Since he apparently placed the bugs in an order of take-out fries, everyone has contacted "the French Frirus" (--). Rotor hangs in to give Sonic and the reader the details before passing out. Using a gizmo left over from "Lizard of Odd" [Sonic #3], Sonic gives himself the title treatment and we're off on yet another "Fantastic Voyage" knockoff. Since Rotor has the decency to pass out with his mouth open, Sonic travels down Rotor's gullet until he meets...ROTOR IN DRAG!! Seriously, he comes across a mini-Rotor wearing a print dress, gaudy earrings, and 10 pounds of cotton on its head. This singular entity is called Rotor's "Auntie Bodies" (----). Auntie tells Sonic she's given up fighting against the French Frirus. Not willing to take this lying down, Sonic continues on only to encounter exploding pustules which also speak with Antoine's bogus accent: The French Foreign Lesions (----). Where's the French Anti-Defamation League when you really need them? After Sonic spins past them, he encounters the beret-wearing, equally- accented "Paris-site" (---) who tries to cook Sonic using Fever (an animate flame--you've seen 'em in cartoons a hundred times before). Sonic learns that he can't punch out a flame, but just as he's about to get hit by the Paris-site's "microbe-bar" (-), Auntie Bodies intervenes. Emboldened by Sonic's "unselfish" [and unspecified] act, she conks Paris-site while Sonic runs rings around Fever and extinguishes him. So now it's time for the story's DEUS EX MACHINA: Rotor's Auntie Bodies uses a single- celled cellular phone (--) [she should have used a T-cellular phone!] to contact the Auntie Bodies in the other freedom fighters. Medicine by telepathy...or is that telephony, with a capital PHONEY? Anyway, the sharp of eye can enjoy images of Sally, Tails, Bunnie and Antoine dressed like little old ladies beating up on Paris-sites. Where's the American Association of Retired Persons when you really need them? With Rotor on the road to recovery, Sonic leaves Rotor only to realize that he's too small to reach the controls of the miniaturizer/enlarger. In order to work the switch, Sonic jams himself up Rotor's nose (all together now: EEEEEEEEW!!), causing him to sneeze Sonic onto the controls. Gallagher may think this is a credible turn of the story, but it's snot (sorry, but Gallagher didn't use that joke in the story and it was just lying around). The last time I was down with the flu I felt like I'd been hit by a truck. Still, I also knew that in a week's time the flu would just be a bad memory. Gallagher, however, tells us nothing about the French Frirus. Is it potentially fatal or just a disabling annoyance? There's no way that a comic book aimed at kids would entertain notions of the former, and if the latter is the case then all Sonic has to do is wait for everyone to recover. In short, there's no story. The character of Auntie Bodies doesn't seem to be of much help; if she/it had been threatened by Paris-site in some heinous fashion, you'd have the makings of a Mobian equivalent to a serious immunodeficiency condition. Or would that be too close to reality? The biggest joke in this story, unfortunately, is its display of medical knowledge. Where's the Centers for Disease Control when you really need them? There is, however, one redeeming feature to the story which deserves a place in the Sonic canon. No, it's not the sight of Rotor in drag. At the very end, Sonic prepares a batch of "my Auntie's secret recipe for chicken soup." Not only has such a person as Sonic's aunt never been mentioned (does this mean Uncle Chuck became a widower at some point?), but Rotor points out that "it's made with chili dogs." So that answers one of the long- simmering (--) debates on the list: those chili dogs Sonic's been scarfing all this time have been made with chicken franks! "The Big Picture" Story: Mike Kanterovich and Ken Penders; Art: Penders And now, an excerpt [sort of] from "Oliver Twist" by Charles Dickens: The evening arrived; the boys took their places. The editor, in his checkered shirt, stationed himself at the desk; his pauper assistants ranged themselves behind him; the story was served out.... The story disappeared; the boys whispered each other, and winked at Oliver; while his next neighbors nudged him. Child as he was, he was desperate with hunger, and reckless with misery. He rose from the table; and advancing to the editor, the two pages in hand, said: somewhat alarmed at his own temerity: "Please, Sir, I want some more." The editor was a dark, bearded man; but he turned very pale. He gazed in stupefied astonishment on the small rebel for some seconds, and then clung for support to the desk. The assistants were paralyzed with wonder; the boys with fear. "What!" said the editor at length, with a faint voice. "Please, Sir," replied Oliver, "I want some more." The editor aimed a blow at Oliver's head with a rolled-up Archie Digest; pinioned him in his arms; and shrieked aloud for the beadle. The board were sitting in solemn conclave, when Mr. Fulop rushed into the room in great excitement, and addressing he gentleman in the high chair said, "Mr. Goldwater, I beg your pardon, Sir! Oliver Twist has asked for more!" There was a general start. Horror was depicted on every countenance. "For MORE!" said Mr. Goldwater. "Compose yourself, Fulop, and answer me directly. Do I understand that he asked for more, after having read the allotted two pages per month?" "He did, Sir," replied Fulop. "That boy will be hung...I know that boy will be hung." Oh, and some hooded figure in a multi-screened control room is watching Knuckles and the Chaotix. I wonder if anyone remembers the plot, or even cares. "Sonic Shot" Story and Art: Ken Penders The Mobian Freedom Fighters are engaged in a game of ice hockey when Snively shows up with some SWATbots to take on Sonic's team. Snively intends it to be a friendly game, and insists he's there without Robotnik's knowledge. Somehow, Robotnik discovers this and uses it to his advantage, issuing a winner-take-all challenge. Sonic accepts and even though the SWATbots play a very physical game against the Mobians, Sonic makes a save at the net and scores the winning goal--so what else is new? This story came out of nowhere -- to say that Snively's out of character is to have a firm grasp of the obvious. The reader never knows how Robotnik is able to communicate with Sonic et al., is there some kind of monitor at the rink (which had better NOT be located in or near Knothole!), or what? Robotnik doesn't even sic the SWATbots on the Mobians after the match -- he only SAYS he's a sore loser but doesn't prove it by his actions. The writing is flatter than a Zambonied ice rink; these Mighty Ducks don't yield any mighty yucks. No Sonic Grams: only covers for the Super Sonic v. Hyper Knuckles special, and Sonic #34 (which hints that Uncle Chuck might be suffering a relapse). Beyond that, there are 2.5 inches of fine print stating circulation figures which still manages to be more entertaining than the cartoons featuring Scott et al. Ron Bauerle, after analyzing the figures, expressed worry that something like 2/3 of the shipped comics are returned to the publisher by comic shops and so forth, but Paul Castiglia got on the list to assure us that Sonic's sales and circulation numbers are just fine, thanks. Not for long, if they keep on publishing magazines like #33. There really wasn't much to redeem this one. Paul C. has suggested that those of us on the list submit story ideas to Scott Fulop for consideration, in the form of a single short paragraph, three ideas per page. Yet I fear that if someone were, for instance, to submit the plot of Michael Szal's fanfic "Nano-Wars" it would, by the time Archie got through with it, end up reading like "Let's Get Small." Still, in order to rescue the mag from creeping lameness, maybe we'd better start coming up with story ideas for them to work with. Can't be too hard; look at what got into this issue: knockoffs based (however loosely) on two movies: "Fantastic Voyage" and "The Mighty Ducks." Consult Ratman's ftp site for Paul C.'s memo on submissions. In keeping with the rather psychedelic cover art, attention should also be paid to the 1 page ad for the Sonic-Knuckles special toward the back. In the ad, a blue Sonic becomes a yellow Super Sonic, and a red Knuckles becomes a magenta Hyper Knuckles. Their dance-like poses remind me of those colorful dancing bears that are a part of Grateful Dead iconography. Actually, their colors also remind me of the uniforms worn by the members of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. We're sorry, but it's time to go. Super Sonic V. Hyper Knuckles Special #1 [no date] "Crash Of The Titans" Story: Mike Gallagher; Art: Art Mawhinney OK, kids, let's sing the theme song! They fight And bite They fight and bite and fight Bite bite bite Fight fight fight The Itchy and Scratchy...oops... The Sonic and Knuckles Show! What can you say about a story where the basic plot can be summed up as: "Sonic and Knuckles try to beat each other up; after finding a hidden level, they warp into Super Sonic and Hyper Knuckles...and try to beat each other up"? What can you say about a story that features no less than TEN editorial box comments by Scott Fulop? My term paper should have as many footnotes! What can you say about a story like that? Quite a bit, actually. Sonic intercepts Knuckles just as the latter is approaching an abandoned pond in sight of Robotropolis. This pretty much signals the beginning of round 1, though Sally shows up a short time later once a tree gets uprooted in the fight: "When the landscape starts to suffer, I step in." Detectng radiation reading using Nicole, Sally peers into the hole left by the uprooted tree. It's a classic missed opportunity for Sonic and Knuckles, for they're so busy glaring at each other that they don't seem to realize that they're in the perfect position to get an eyeful of Acorn booty. "Don't be shy, boys! Take a look down here!" Indeed! I've voiced my opinion about Gallagher's jokey scripts in the past; this time around, he largely keeps it in check. He also gives Sally an amazing aside totally out of left field which I will NOT spoil. The curious can read it on page 13. Gallagher may specialize in screwball gag writing, but apparently he can throw a mean curve when he has to. Once in the zone, Sonic and Knuckles each collect enough trinkets to power up and resume their fight. In order to bring this to an end, the two buttheads butt heads with sufficient force that the zone collapses ("I felt a great disturbance in the Force, Luke!"). Sonic comes to as Sally provides about a page of exposition. She also gives Sonic a ride home on a "sky-cycle" though Scott's editorial box neatly conceals the view of Sonic's hands around Sally's waist -- party pooper! (Though from what I can see of the placement of Sonic's left hand, it's either just gesturing or else was drawn wrong and the box serves the purpose of an artistic fig leaf. Sonic's left hand should have been obscured by Sally's back instead of blocking her right side. I know, I know: everybody's an art critic!). Knuckles has to settle for a spare Chaos Emerald as a consolation prize. The story, though minimal, is better than expected. Perhaps Gallagher needed Mawhinney's brilliant (as usual) art as a steadying influence. Some bad jokes that strain the fourth wall (particularly Robotnik's cameo role), and Sonic and Knuckles seem at times like they're trying to talk each other to death, but a good combination on the whole. "Fathers and Sons" Story: Mike Kanterovich & Ken Penders; Art: Ken Penders The story begins with a younger Knuckles being given a tour of the island by his father, who sports a short beard and whose white belted jacket means either that he and Luke Skywalker buy their clothes from the same store, or else he operates a dojo on the side. Turns out, in mid-tour, we learn we're in mid- flashback. The words Knuckles heard his father use have been quoted at him by Archimedes. After another flashback concerning Knuckles' problem-solving strategy (when in doubt, punch it out), we learn that the island also has a Forbidden Zone and that this was where Knuckles' father turned over guardianship of the island before leaving his son. I won't say how, exactly, but let's just say that Knuckles' old man sure knows how to make an exit! VERY impressive layout on the top of page 7 and in the upper left panels of page 8. Though I prefer dialogue to soliloquy, the latter was effectively used. So it looks like, after months of 2-page vamping, we're getting ready to get on with the Knuckles story. P.S.: a 1-page ad displays the covers for Sonic #34 (is Sonic being captured by Uncle Chuck?), and all three Knuckles miniseries covers...as if the resumption of the Knuckles solo story in #34 weren't enough. If I were Knuckles, I'd ask for more money! #34 [May 1996] Spaziante cover. Scott lets it be known, merely in passing, that Spaziante has been the regular cover artist since #31. Like we couldn't have figured that out. "To Bot Or Not To Bot" Story: Angelo DeCesare; Art: Brian Thomas (debut) The story starts out with a jolt, as Uncle Chuck and Muttski endure yet another failed attempt at being deroboticized. Meanwhile, the scene shifts to Robotropolis in a panel which (in an echo of the opening credits of StH) reminds us that the city is on the shore of a lake or bay. Seems to me this is a useful plot point, but anyway. Robotnik has watched "Patton" once too often and has assembled a troop of Combots, camouflaged soldier bots with which he plans to attack the Great Forest. Robotnik loses the element of surprise, however, because Dulcy has overheard his plans. She doesn't repeat the message exactly right but Sally gets the picture. Sonic, Uncle Chuck and Muttski return to Robotropolis to take out the Combots. Once inside the compound, however, Robotnik zaps Uncle Chuck and Muttski to bring their minds back under his control. Uncle Chuck arrests Sonic. The next morning, Tails, Bunnie and Antoine return from patrol to report no sign of Sonic. The three of them are wearing the same black turtleneck sweater and knit stocking cap combination they last wore in "That's The Spirit!" [Sonic #20] -- just the thing for late night commando operations or a casual evening of stalking your ex-wife [Freedom Fighter outfits provided by O.J.'s of Brentwood]. Sonic shows up soon enough -- lashed to the front of a tank Robotnik is driving at the head of his Combots. Very sadistic touch -- I LOVE IT! Sally calls retreat and has the freedom fighters abandon Knothole for an underground shelter. Unfortunately, Robotnik cuts them off. However, when Robotnik gives the Combots the order to flatten the Great Forest, they malfunction by turning around and marching off the nearest cliff. At the same time Sonic has managed to escape his bonds and has commandeered Robotnik's tank. Robotnik and Snively beat a retreat in a hover craft driven by Uncle Chuck. Wha' hoppened? Thanks to Rotor's exposition, we learn that Rotor had fitted both Uncle Chuck and Muttski with neuro- overriders -- the same electronic gizmos that DIDN'T work for Sally in "Steel Belted Sally" [the infamous Sonic #29]. Amazing what a drop of solder in the right place can do. So while pretending to be back under Robotnik's influence, Uncle Chuck was able to reprogram the Combots and make sure that Sonic could escape easily from being lashed to the tank. It also helps maintain his cover and gets him back in the spy business. Brian's artwork isn't seriously off-model, and his rendering of Dulcy is especially dead-on. Still, his rendering of the Mobians (especially the females) has them looking a little too cute. No matter; welcome aboard, B.T.! A Sense of History, Part I Story: Mike Kanterovich and Ken Penders; Art: Penders After months of two-page vamps, Kanterovich & Penders start into the 3-parter prelude to the next Knuckles miniseries. It begins with a recap of echidnoid civilization: Once upon a time, the echidnas were the top of the Mobian heap in terms of having an advanced civilization centered in Echidnapolis, an island city surrounded by the Great River (once again, for all their advances, they do have a knack for taking only one adjective, "Great", and running it into the ground). Which would have been the fate of Echidnapolis if a couple distant relatives of Knuckles hadn't determined that a white comet was going to wipe out the city. To avert this disaster, the populace fanned out to gather together a dozen chaos emeralds and place them in subterranean caverns beneath the city. This caused the island city to become a floating island, just in time. Which was all well and good, according to Knuckles our narrator, except that this somehow ties in with the creation of Mount Fate and the appearance of a great menace. To be continued. Was it worth the wait? For me it was, but then again I'm a sucker for a good origins story. You get an idea of how many hair styles an echidna is capable of, and there's a VERY nice use of close-up at the top of page 6. Aside from the fact that the situation reminded me a little too much of the fate of the planet Krypton (in a "What if..." sort of way), Kanterovich & Penders have pulled it off. Sonic-Grams: I have a really hard time believing that kids are writing to ask Scott Fulop to be a pen pal. It's a little like saying that, in the heyday of the New Yorker when they were running cartoons by Thurber, that fan mail was coming in addressed to Harold Ross! Then again, recent communiques by Ken Penders have spoken of Fulop almost as if he were the editor in the past tense. So perhaps the guard has changed and we haven't been told yet. Let's cut to the chase: Sonic #35 will attempt to answer questions concerning Sonic and the power rings (the cover art shows Sonic and what appear to be the masks of the Ancient Walk-Ons...er, Walkers). Bunnie fanboy alert: she's scheduled to do a solo story in Sonic #37 (Rich Koslowski handling both script and art) and will be a featured player in an upcoming two-parter (script by Gallagher, art by Spaziante -- talk about your odd couples!). Espio will also be getting a solo shot. Nathan Gropp of Rochester, Indiana, wants to know if E.V.E. [Sonic #21] will be coming back into the story; the response indicates that it all depends on fan response. OK, all you Fiona Fox fans out there, you have your work cut out for you! #35 [June 1996] "Ring of Truth," (in 3 parts) Story: Mike Gallagher; Art: Dave Manak The story starts out in total game mode, with Sonic being chased by Robotnik and losing his accumulated power rings along the way (a situation to which I can, unfortunately, relate). While dodging Robotnik's maceball he grabs at a ring that causes him to disappear. Robotnik's onboard computer has been keeping count of the number of rings Sonic has grabbed in the course of a lifetime [how convenient! Maybe Robotnik can find honest work as a baseball statistician!] and it turns out that was the 1,000,000,000th power ring. Never mind that, in the animated series, Sonic can only access one ring a day. We're dealing with some different realities here. Sonic finds himself transported into another dimension, where dwell the Ancient Walkers. He is told that it is his billionth ring and that his reward will be...knowledge. Or a copy of the home game, it depends. Our hero finds himself falling toward a green sea. Turns out it's green because it's made up, not of water, but of chaos emeralds. The billionth ring, following him around like a spaniel, breaks his fall. A second Walker, wearing a Mercedes-Benz hood ornament for no particular reason, challenges Sonic to solve the Riddle of the Rings. Sonic guesses the answer and is buried by coiled chains of power rings for his trouble. Their accumulated weight drag him down under the sea of emeralds where, rat-like, he is forced to run on the inside of the aforementioned power ring. He confronts the third Walker who subjects him to one of the oldest gags in the business. There follows an entirely useless page of Sonic trying unsuccessfully to make sense out of the preceding eleven pages until, finally, he emerges back in his own dimension, ring in hand, disabling Robotnik's hover unit in the process. Gallagher gets major points for stretching, for writing a story beyond the Sonic Vs. Robotnik And If You Have To Wonder Who Will Win Then You Must Be New In Town genre. Aside from the small problems with this story (the billion ring business, the "Playboy" pun that misfires), there's a more fundamental flaw. And since "Prof. Fulop" invited "scholarly" evaluations (in a box on page 14) I humbly submit: A COMPARISON OF THE STRUCTURE OF "RING OF TRUTH" WITH THE MESOPOTAMIAN "EPIC OF GILGAMESH" The Epic of Gilgamesh, which dates back to the first millennium BCE, is a prototypical tale of a hero's quest. "Ring of Truth," on the other hand, deviates from the Gilgamesh model in several important ways: In Gilgamesh, the hero at one point undertakes a quest. This quest has a purpose: to obtain a magic flower that will undo the death of Gilgamesh's best friend, Enkidu, who died as a result of their fighting against the Bull of Heaven. Sonic, however, stumbles upon the zone of the Ancient Walkers strictly by accident. He just happened to grab the requisite number of rings. It really doesn't count as a "quest" if it's accidental. The same weakness showed up in "Southern Crossover, Part 3," where Tails just has the events of Mobian prehistory channelled through him to no obvious purpose or benefit. The second flaw in the story "Ring of Truth" involves Sonic's inability to learn from what has happened (and to impart said knowledge to the reader). For Gilgamesh, his quest ends when, having obtained the flower, it is taken from him by a serpent and the god Utnapishtim delivers the punch line: that in life there are no second chances. By page 14 of "Ring of Truth," on the other hand, all we are left with is a metaphysical mishmosh that gives Sonic a headache and which offers the reader a number of meanings to choose from: A. Yes! B. This Isn't Fair! C. Forty-Two! D. Some Of The Above! It doesn't help matters that his "guides" on the path of enlightenment are less than convincing. Since their debut in "Tttriple Tttrouble" [Game Gear Adaptation #1], the Ancient Walkers have been saddled with the burden of Dave Manak's artwork. Our hedgehog hero is up against some heavy cosmic stuff; Manak, however, manages to transform "cosmic" into "comic." His Walkers look like people wearing rather unconvincing rubber dinosaur suits and masks that look like they belong on the walls of Trader Vic's or some other tiki and tropical drink bar. Even Spaziante's sparse cover rendering of the same masks cannot save them from looking, quite frankly, ridiculous. A little more thought in this story could have prevented it from ending up as a lot of mystical sound and fury, signifying nothing. "A Sense of History, Part 2" Story and Art: Ken Penders As Knuckles continues to flash back, it is now about four generations after Echidnapolis went airborne thanks to the installation of a dozen chaos emeralds. Two echidna brothers, Edmund and Dmitri, survey the chaos chamber where the emeralds continue to radiate. Their proposal to return the floating island to the ground by means of a "chaos syphon" that would gradually leach power from the stones, is sharply denied by the scientific establishment who aren't in a mood to tamper with the forces of nature. Enraged by such narrowmindedness, Dmitri uses the prototype of the syphon on the emeralds. It succeeds in reducing eleven of the twelve stones to charred shards and transforms Dmitri into a being with "the energies of eleven shattered chaos emeralds howling within him." [Note to Ken Penders: Great line!] Dmitri then either calls forth, or else morphs into, Mount Fate. To be continued. Now THIS is more like it! If you're going to be mystical, you can be linear about it as well. So how exactly does echidna civilization come to an end? THAT'S what I call a tease. This just about makes me forget about all those 2-month vamps. Sonic-Grams, etc.: The cover of #36 is interesting, not just because Spaz has given us yet another tail shot of Sally, but because she and Sonic apparently come face to helmet with one of Sauron's Black Riders. That's a High Concept plot for you: Mobius meets Middle Earth! I can only hope that this "quest" isn't an ongoing excuse to put Sonic et al. in different settings outside Mobius. By me, it would be a tacit admission that the writers had run dry and they couldn't come up with any more story ideas involving the basic concept. We'll know better next month. Great, Scott! You're outta here! Then again, Ken Penders has spoken of you in the past tense for some time now, so the move must've been a done deal by the time this went to press. Ken also said Scott quit to pursue some writing. Let's see: he contributed six editorial boxes to "Ring of Truth" and ten to "Crash of the Titans." So why am I not surprised that he wanted to write? Let's hope Fred Mendez does a better job of keeping his ego in check. Letters: a Canadian reader contributes a Sonic rap and manages to finish each line without including the word "Eh?". The other letter (there are only two) asks if Knuckles has hands inside his gloves [no, they're hooks, you little...let us pause a moment to weep for this younger generation], and asks whatever happened to the ABC series. Scott shines him off by blaming Robotnik's stranglehold on the mainstream media and by saying that Sonic was too fast for the time slot. OK, I'm also disappointed that he didn't advise the kid to read my FAQ File. Maybe Fred knows enough to credit the computer-literate among the readership. Heck, you ever count how many commercials are now featuring the addresses of Web pages? Our day will come, Cyber- Mobians! #36 [July 1996] Spaziante cover art -- the castle and carved gates don't figure into the story, but who cares? Another masterpiece. Heart of Darkness (3 parts) Story: Ken Penders; Art: Art Mawhinney HOYOTOHO! No, Rotor hasn't tuned into Bayreuth to watch the Flight of the Valkyrie. What he DOES have is a "live" remote from the "Zone of Silence." Isn't that the same thing as "The Void"? After about 5 panels of explanation, some of the readers of this list still seem uncertain on this point. All I know is, it bears no resemblance to the Void featured in the TV ep of the same name. In any event, the fact that it isn't the Void is offered up by Rotor as a way of explaining why previous attempts to travel there and back again were so easy. But in a more important complication, there are serious power reading coming from Robotropolis. Sonic goes to investigate, and arrives to find Snively at the controls of some kind of beam generator which reminds me too much of the climax of "All Good Things...", the final ep of "Star Trek: The Next Generation" (now that Ken Penders has revealed himself to have worked on Star Trek comics I'm keeping my copy of the _Star Trek Encyclopedia_ close at hand to check for references, though the STE as a reference work suffers from flaws that range from annoying to unforgivable. But I digress...). Sonic arrives and takes the device out of commission, and Robotnik congratulates him on endangering all of Mobius. Cue the flashback for Sonic's (and our) benefit: Seems that when Robotnik took over eleven years ago, he wanted to use the Zone of Silence developed by his "mentor" Kodos as a sort of interdimensional concentration camp. Unfortunately, once he sent King Acorn there he realized that it was unstable and would absorb Mobius. Subjecting the thing to a steady stream from a photon cannon managed to keep it in check, but with the cannon destroyed by Sonic alternative measures have to be taken. Robotnik gives Sonic an "energy inhibitor" which bears a striking resemblance to a household bug bomb. He convinces Sonic to detonate it within the Zone; despite serious reservations, Sonic, Sally, Tails, and Antoine enter the Zone, which basically looks like Space, The Final Frontier(tm). There, they confront the dark rider flanked by some characters who look like they belong in a game of Doom. Sonic dispatches these bit players, but before the rider/knight/whatever can draw a bead on Sonic, Sally intervenes. In the struggle, she knocks off his helmet and reveals him to be...what the heck, someone of the list has already spilled the beans...King Acorn!!! Or a reasonable facsimile thereof. Actually, he's not that reasonable, for he gives Sally a quick jolt with his lance for her troubles. In response, Sonic detonates the bug bomb -- don't ask me what the practical results were because they're never spelled out. Rotor manages to drag the Mobians back through the portal before they overshoot it, and a shaken and subdued Sally is probably thinking that now she knows how Luke Skywalker must have felt at the end of "The Empire Strikes Back." To be continued, somewhere along the way. And to think it was only three issues ago that we were witnesses to some of the lamest excuses for storytelling ever, even for the medium of comic books. The improvement, both in terms of complexity and emotional impact, has been quantum. Major kudos for both artwork and story. So, does anyone besides me think that that WASN'T Sally's father wearing that armor? Not only did the Zone bear no resemblance to the Void, but in the two TV eps where Sally and her father were reunited ["Blast To The Past, Part 1" and "The Void"] Sally's father didn't fail to recognize her. That didn't happen this time, which makes it all just a little too unconvincing. I'm also haunted by Robotnik's aside on page 9 about Sonic doing his "dirty work" for him. It leaves me with the strong impression that Robotnik knew precisely what effect the bug bomb would have in the Zone. So the question remains: whom did Sonic destroy? Possible candidates: A. the real King Acorn B. Kodos as King Acorn C. a parallel King Acorn (cf. "Night of a Thousand Sonics") D. None of the above And judging from the effects of the bug bomb in the Zone, I feel pretty safe in saying that whoever it was was destroyed when it detonated. Which has major consequences from Sally's point of view: can she really feel close to the hedgehog who (she may believe) assassinated her father? I don't envy Ken Penders his job: this story's opened some major pitfalls and trap doors, and it's his burden to resolve matters plausibly (unlike the conclusion to "Growing Pains"). Stay tuned; you can bet I will! "A Sense of History: Part 3" Story: Mike Kanterovich and Ken Penders/Art: Ken Penders No wonder Ken P. has been waiting for this review! Let's recap the story to date: Dmitri has just used the "chaos siphon" to trash eleven of the 12 Chaos Emeralds that hold up the floating island. He has taken his brother and some of the leaders of echidna society prisoner. He has already directed the resident "mecha-nauts" to enslave the populace, and once the island is equipped with sails he plans to similarly conquer the rest of the planet. In the midst of this raving, however, it develops that his fortress Mt. Fate has been subverted from within: the foundation has been eroded by fire ants and the place starts collapsing. The imprisoned echidnas escape and Dmitri is buried beneath the rubble. The Magistrate gratuitously quotes from the Book of Proverbs and declares that Dmitri's end was as much a result of the society's trust in science resulting in hubris as it was Dmitri's own madness. This led to a certain overreaction as the echidnas destroyed their city and appointed a guardian over the last remaining emerald. Which, several generations later, turns out to be Knuckles. So what's this all have to do with the plot? (Remember the plot?) Knuckles suddenly starts putting it together: he remembers the words "Grand Conserve" from issue #31(!) and realizes that it refers to The Grand Conservatory, an underground warehouse where artifacts of echidna society were stored. He believes that this is where Archimedes (remember him?) is hiding out and where the missing Chaotix (remember them?) are being held. So, as Bill Cosby said in the course of one of his comedy routines: "I told you that story to tell you this one." And once more quoting his father (who was apparently named George Santayana) he reminds us of the plot and begins his segue to his miniseries (conveniently advertised on the facing page). WHEW! I know that this process took longer than anticipated, what with the addition of three 2-pagers over the course of three months, but Kanterovich & Penders came pretty darn close to losing the audience there. In any event, the ad for the miniseries pretty well telegraphs the plot based on what went before: Dmitri vs. Knuckles. BTW, I wouldn't make too much of the movie poster format. Sonic-Grams: Who was it that said "We buy the product so we can read about Sonic and Tails, not Scott and Paul." Oh, yeah, it was me...in my review of #29. Nice to know the Fredster is willing to listen; by keeping the Blue Blur front and center in the "office humor" section [drawn by Spaziante] he actually managed to come up with something funny! Senor Mendez limits himself to less than 2 column inches of self-introduction before going on to "what you really want to know: mainly Sonic the Hedgehog!" [By George, I think he's got it!] Topics: the launch of the Knuckles miniseries; a story titled "The Fall of Robotropolis" by DeCesare and Thomas (after his debut in "To Bot or Not To Bot" in #34); plus further developments on the King Acorn plot set up by "Heart of Darkness." Letters: Kim Wessels of Des Moines agrees with Tails that it's rough being treated like a kid. In answer to a barrage of questions, the person writing the replies pegs the birthdates of Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles to the release dates of the Sonic 1, 2 and 3 games respectively. However, he punts the question as to whether the TV series is still on the air -- this reply must have been locked in months ago, before the USA Network picked up Sonic's option. And in a major concession to the comic's popularity, there's a list of people who sent in letters and fan art that didn't get published but who still might love seeing their names in print. Fred, I like your style! Spaziante cover art for #37 shows Sonic holding a (lifeless?) Sally in his arms. Is it possible for Spaziante NOT to do a cool cover that involves Sally? Looks like the train is definitely back on the rails! Double-bag this puppy! #37 [Aug 1996] I'm getting tired of these covers by Spaziante...NOT!!! Sonic in freefall (apparently) holding Sally in his arm. Nice design - - call it "The Mobian Pieta." And if you don't know what I'm talking about, get thee to a library and read up on the sculptures of Michelangelo [the sculptor, not the turtle!]. "The Day Robotropolis Fell" Story: Angelo DeCesare/Art: Brian Thomas Sonic and Sally rendezvous with Uncle Chuck in Robotropolis, who breaks the news to them that Robotnik has predicted that an earthquake is going to hit the city (Excuse me, Dr. Robotnik, some gentlemen from Cal Tech have just arrived; they keep talking about "the big one" so I assume they mean you...). Robotnik's plan is to hover over the city in a giant saucer-like craft loaded with his SWATbots until the quake ends. He doesn't particularly care what happens to the worker bots (i.e., roboticized Mobians) but Uncle Chuck does. Uncle Chuck's plan: while Robotnik is hovering, they enter his HQ, reactivate the deroboticizer (gee, that's the first I've heard of it!) and treat as many worker bots as possible before the quake hits. This assumes what Uncle Chuck doesn't: that Robotnik left a comfortable margin between takeoff and the quake. Unable to deroboticize the Mobians one at a time, he plans to blow up the roboticizer by overloading it, counting on the diffusion to deroboticize the Mobians in bulk, as it were. Sounds to me like the scientific equivalent of supply-side economics, but never mind. In the resulting blast, Uncle Chuck is NOT effected while the rest of the worker bots are. Uncle Chuck and DeCesare don't bother to explain how this could have happened before the next tremor comes down the pike. Rotor just happens to arrive with a transport plane, but it proves to be too small. Sally pulls rank and orders Uncle Chuck onto the plane -- OK, so it's not exactly the airport scene from "Casablanca." While Sally tries to find out from Nicole what's the best way out of Robotropolis during an earthquake, a sizable chunk of masonry lands on top of her. If this weren't a comic book, she'd be a stain on the pavement; as it is, she's unconscious and it's up to Sonic to get her out of town. They manage, and we eventually see Sally with her head bandaged and her arm in a sling. Robotnik lands and resolves to rebuild, relying on a satellite-based force field to protect the city during its reconstruction. I'll leave it to the Californians on the list as to whether DeCesare's depiction of a quake is credible; me, I had enough troubles with this story. Uncle Chuck is suffering from a bad case of logic deficiency in this one: the business with the deroboticizer--It will be most effective if I overload it to the point of destroying it--reminds me too much of some of the plot problems with "Steel-Belted Sally" (#29). There's no way ALL of the roboticized Mobians could have converged on the deroboticizer just in time for the explosion so some of them had to have been victims of the quake, just as there's no way Sally could have avoided becoming a blob of royal jelly after that masonry fell on her. Nor do we ever find out how Uncle Chuck escaped the effects of the deroboticizer, or how Rotor was able to get a plane from Deus Ex Machina Airlines into the city in time. The premise of the story was good, as was the artwork, but the more you think about the plot the more it turns into a no-brainer. Sonic Art: I thought Brian Thomas had drawn the eyes of the characters in "The Day Robotropolis Fell" too big--Sally especially looked as if she belonged in a black velvet painting-- until I saw Charles Kusiak's fanart. You could drive a TRUCK through those pupils! Bunnie's Worst Nightmare Story and Art: Rich Koslowski[debut] Bunnie's first solo effort starts out with quite a premise: What starts out as an annoying itch turns out to be a spreading case of roboticization. Thanks to a convenient hologram of Robotnik to describe the plot, it turns out that Bunnie may have been partially roboticized at one time, but a "microscopic device" implant has started to finish the job. On the verge of total roboticization, she leaves Knothole. After traveling all night she falls asleep and wakes up to...The Old Dream Ending! It's a pity Rich was only given 8 pages to play with; with another 8 pages, this could have been the story it was meant to be. It's not that this ground hasn't been travelled before: it has, in everything from "The Amazing Colossal Man" to "Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde" to the remake of "The Fly": what it's like for someone to gradually lose their humanity (or in Bunnie's case, to borrow a word from Richard Adams, her "animality") while becoming something else. If you'll allow me, here's how it could have played: At first Bunnie ignores the first signs of change, though she may even have a suspicion as to what it may mean. This proves the saying heard in 12 Step groups: Denial ain't just a river in Egypt! Then the condition continues its slow, relentless possession of her. I think it wouldn't be too strong to say that, from Bunnie's point of view, this gradual takeover of her bod must feel like slow-motion rape. An off-hand remark from one of her friends (spoken in innocence by Tails or in ignorance by Antoine) lets the reader know that she's not just turning into a machine but also into one of Robotnik's minions. After the obligatory note scene, she starts to leave Knothole but is intercepted by Sally who tries one last time to talk her into staying. After a tearful farewell, Bunnie begins to leave, then pauses. Sally, ever hopeful, runs over to her, only to discover that Bunnie's transformation is complete and that she's gone over to the Dark Side, as it were. She now has a new set of priorities, the first of which is: "DETAIN FREEDOM FIGHTERS. BY ORDER OF ROBOTNIK." I'm not trying to brag, but I barely broke a sweat coming up with this enhancement to the story line. Yet I also couldn't help but think of (if you'll allow me to get momentarily off- topic) an episode of Disney's "Aladdin." In this one ep, Jasmine begins turning into a kind of serpent creature due to a spell by Mirage, an evil being. She and Al journey in search of a possible cure. When all attempts to get at the cure are foiled by Mirage and Jasmine's transformation into a monster is complete, Al takes it upon himself to become the same kind of creature as she has become, for the sake of love. I mention this because while Rich does a good job of showing what is happening--the plot certainly moves right along--there's not much room in the story for all but the most superficial treatment of Bunnie's emotional state. Her emotional landscape is painted only in the broadest strokes; this was the fatal flaw that made Tails' change of heart at the end of "Southern Crossover" [Tails miniseries #3] patently unbelievable. Perhaps this goes back to the question of the core audience of the comic, but the Aladdin ep mentioned above demonstrates that it is possible to tell such a story without dumbing it down emotionally. I look upon this story as eight pages of "what might have been." As glad as I am to see Bunnie getting a solo shot, I really believe she deserved better. Sonic-Grams: hint that the theme of a devastated Robotropolis will continue and that Sonic will become a slow-mo. Plug for Knuckles #2, and a hint that Sonic will finally have a date with the Roboticizer in #39. Cute depiction of Joe Pepitone as Robotnik and Fred Mendez as a computer program. Lyrics to a Sonic song, and a couple guesses as to the identity of Archimedes, with an actual answer! Almost a full page of names of readers who have written--major headache! Will attempts to post further synopses and FAQs to the home page whereon the Faq File resides. Otherwise, I may actually have to (dare I say it?) SPEND MONEY for a computer and a subscription to CompuServe or AOL! My current machine at home -- an XT vanilla clone I got as a castoff from my brother-in-law -- can no longer read its own hard drive. And my lunch hour at work is just about... #38 [Sept 1996] Spaziante/Harvo cover: Sonic is harvesting a power ring when he's spotted by a squad of ComBots. Don't you hate when that happens? "The Rise of Robotropolis--the Fall of Sonic" Story: Kent Taylor[debut]/Art: Manny Galan[debut] And welcome to Amateur Hour, Sonic fans! Seriously, Ken Penders has been forthright about downsizing in the funny book industry. Will Kent and Manny prove to be as formidable as Gallagher and Manak? Let me rephrase that.... Our story opens with some slightly off-model characters, an armload of exposition from Tails, an interesting POV, and Antoine uncharacteristically wielding a broadsword (with no shield, armor, or even a scabbard). Although in this weather (a nice touch, by the way), it might be more accurate to say he's wielding a lightning rod. It turns out Tails, Antoine and Sonic are reconning Robotropolis after the earthquake, but for all practical purposes the quake never happened; the city looks as menacing and run-down as ever. So you can forget the plotline from "The Day Robotropolis Fell" since it's not really necessary for this story. Anyway, the gang come upon some ComBots left over from "To Bot Or Not To Bot" [#34]. Tails airlifts Antoine out of harm's way only to drop him on top of a couple of ComBots in what Taylor calls an "atomic drop." This maneuver bears no resemblance to the professional wrestling move of the same name, but hey, if Sonic can drop-kick a ComBot in the crotch (page 3) while calling it a "drop-kick to the chest" who am I to say? Anyway, remember what I said about Antoine's sword being a possible lightning rod? Well, one of the ComBots is struck by lightning; the resulting explosion, however, knocks Sonic out cold. Fearing the worst (because Sonic's got those stupid X's in his eyes that hint that maybe a cartoon character has gone to That Big Inkwell In The Sky), a fearful, tearful Tails (with an achey breaky heart?) flies off to get help. He returns with the rest of the gang; the storm is over and Sonic is coming to. Unfortunately, he seems to have been slowed down by the explosion; Rotor's explanation of how this happened is so full of technobabble that I'm not about to boil it down. Nicole suggests multiple power rings as a possible cure for his condition. On their way back to Knothole to implement this suggestion, the group is ambushed by cloaked ComBots. Everyone is captured except for Sonic, who manages to avoid yet another exploding ComBot by jumping into the pool where the Power Rings are generated. Give Taylor credit for doing his homework by reading the character sheet on Sonic; he knows that the blue dude can't swim. He's rescued from drowning by...HOWARD THE DUCK WEARING FALSE EYELASHES! No, it's only Penelope Platypus from the Princess Sally Miniseries. The rest of that group apparently saw the battle on a "SPY CAM" courtesy of Deus Ex Machina Photo Equipment. With guest star backup and one power ring, Sonic is going to attempt a rescue. Sonic links up with the two canine operatives from the opening scene of "A Scrambled Hedgehog" [#27] and an extremely improbably fly-creature. Sonic's nerves are getting a little raw without his speed advantage but he and the others follow the spy underground's instructions and enter...if you said "one of Robotnik's traps" you must have read ahead. So now what? Now it's time to strain the law of averages to the limit: Sonic is holding onto one power ring, and he suddenly remembers he has a spare in the backpack he's been wearing (and it only took him 7 pages to remember) AND he just happens to see another power ring embedded in the torso of the ComBot which blew up on page 9 and which just happens to be undergoing repairs in the same room! And Robotnik doesn't even seem to have noticed the power ring! Gee, what are the odds? Sonic manages to collect all three and, reprising the theme song from "Sonic the Hedgehog" that he started singing at the beginning of this story, he makes short work of the ComBots while allowing Robotnik to make one of his patented Escapes Leaving Our Heroes In Peril Which They Escape Anyway. Story-wise, it's simple enough: Can Sonic get over being just another slow-mo? It's a good premise, but in order for the story to keep moving there are so many coincidences that it begins to look positively Dickensian after a while. The storm was a nice touch, and necessary to the plot, but was over as soon as it wasn't needed. Bunnie, Sally and Rotor manage to arrive just as Sonic's injury proves non-life threatening -- wouldn't it have made just as much sense for Tails to airlift Sonic? After all, he did the same for Antoine a few panels earlier. There must have been cloaked ComBots all over the Great Forest for the gang to run into them. And once again, NOTHING in this plot really hinges on the earthquake that was supposed to have happened in the previous issue; with the most minor of changes, this story could have run six months ago! Remember my saying that Brian Thomas's artwork in "To Bot Or Not..." made the characters a little too cute? Manny Galan seems to be having the opposite problem: while his characters aren't seriously off- model, they do look...how can I put this...gangly. Bunnie especially; the pictures of her on page 6 make me think she's going to try out for the NBA (I'll bet those metal feet would be murder on hardwood floors). And as much as I like Manny's use of differing points of view when drawing, some of the panels seem to use interesting POV just because it's there. The overhead shot on page 11 is a legit use; the POV in the last panel on page 7 is just confusing and pointless. And be very afraid of the picture of an infant Sonic on page 7! Sure, it seems like a throwaway bit that's stuck in as part of a larger, and largely unrelated, story. But that's how the Muppet Babies(R) got started! Beware! Anyway, it's a worthy first effort for Kent and Manny; the former needs to think his plots through and the latter needs to watch the tendency to play visual tricks at the expense of clarity. Like this kind of criticism will make any difference; Archie's already got Sonic comics planned out for the next year at least. "Bedtime Tails" "A scintillating saga of triumph and tragedy crafted with care in the mighty Mobius manner by Mike Kanterovich & Ken Penders, with John D'Agostino, Vickie Williams & Barry Grossman" [Note: I have reproduced this drivel in full because it seems all five parties involved want to avoid taking specific credit/blame for the following. With reason. Let's see: Mike and Ken had to have written it, I'm guessing Ken did the art while D'Ag did the inking, with Vickie and Barry handling the lettering and coloring respectively. How'd I do?] Sonic has taken to bed with a cold, and watching daytime TV is only making things worse. Taking a cue from both "Tails' Knighttime Story" [#22] and "Southern Crossover" [the Tails miniseries], Tails shows up to subject Sonic to comics that he's written and drawn himself. To his credit, Tails has moved away from the preadolescent egotism of "Tails To Astonish" but his artwork has slipped a couple notches. What, Gallagher didn't want to get in on the fun? We start out with a Fantastic Four parody (for want of a better word) starring Sonic, Sally, Tails and Rotor. The set-up manages to combine elements of the sublime (James Thurber's "Secret Life of Walter Mitty") with the ridiculous (the theme from "Gilligan's Island"). It's a pretty lame comic, since of the four "superheroes" only Sonic demonstrates anything like a super power -- Tails doesn't even FLY except on the cover art! If you're waiting for Sal to go invisible or Rotor to hulk out, forget it! I won't even bother with the hackneyed plot concerning a giant alien named Robotnicus and the stupid way he's defeated. Suffice it to say that the comic's so dull it puts Sonic to sleep. Turnabout being fair play, when Sonic recovers and Tails is under the weather, Sonic cranks out an issue of "Bat-Sonic" to read to the kid. We are mercifully spared the adventure of the "dark and stormy knight." Though the logo on the cover says it was published by "Sonic Comics" I'd have guessed it was published by Deja Vu Comics, since Bat-Sonic put in an appearance during "Night of a Thousand Sonics" [#19]. The covers of both comics are reproduced on one full page each; what, they ran out of fan art this issue? In the words of a certain animated non-role model who wears an AC-DC t-shirt and thinks that nachos rule: "What the hell is THIS crap?" The modeling for Tails is way past off (though Sally manages to look gorgeous in spandex), and the writing is simply slap-dash. This reads like something that was thrown together to take up space at the last minute because everyone involved was so busy concentrating on stuff like the Knuckles miniseries or the upcoming Mecha Madness issue. The worst part of it is, I actually LIKED the idea of a Fantastic Four treatment of the Knothole gang and was disappointed that so little of substance was done with it. But the Gang of Five (Mike, Ken et al.) should have taken it to the next level. Look into your heart of hearts. What we should have been given, "in the mighty Mobius manner," was a comic adaptation of: THE MIGHTY MORPHIN' FREEDOM FIGHTERS C'mon, it practically writes itself: Sonic as the Blue Ranger, Sally as the Pink Ranger, Bunnie as the Yellow Ranger (because it's her color), Tails as the Black Ranger (because it's his comic!), Rotor as the Green Ranger, and Antoine as that twerpy droid running around yelling "Sacre bleu cheeze!" (which is French for: "Ay-yi-yi-yi-yi!"). What'd ya expect, Antoine as the White Ranger? And how about Robotnik with Rita hair? King Acorn as that giant floating holographic head? And lest anyone misunderstand, I HATE the M.M.P.R. if for no other reason than they clobbered Sonic in the Sat AM ratings and prevented the third season from happening. It would serve them right! I haven't seen a story this lame since "Sonic Shot" [#33]. [[Exclusive to Ron B: Ken Penders has since explained that a) the verbiage in the credits box was a send-up of the way Marvel used to do it -- I was never into Marvel in its heyday so what did I know; b) this story had been written for inclusion in, like, Sonic #19 but got shelved, which might explain the earlier, lighter tone; c) Sega suits nixed a drawing of a Sonic Power Ranger from "Night of a Thousand Sonics" and pretty much banned any references to MMPR. OK, but I STILL wanted to see Sally become invisible!]] Sonic Grams: The office humor strip: twice the humor of the old (Scott Fulop) strip in only half the space! It would appear Spaziante was put onto the Mecha Madness issue with the result that Art Mawhinney did the art for the Knuckles miniseries (which has NOT shown up on local newsstands -- that's why I sent away for the whole series). Fred also indicates that due to popular demand, the Forty Fathom Freedom Fighters and the Chaotix have stories in the Mecha Madness issue. Letters: Evelynne Pine puts her $.02 in about the romantic triangle in "A Robot Rides The Rails" [#31]. Ken Bluma mentions a "Look and Find" book featuring Sonic and illustrated by Art Mawhinney -- THAT I'd like to get! Fred punts an age question, stating that Sally's 14(!) and Antoine's 18(!!!). Then there's the "Find Your Name In Print" page, which Dmitry Muraschik calls "'Where's Waldo?' with letters". And Archie is running ads for its Hanna-Barbera comics line, including "Scooby-Doo!" You should read what they're saying about him on rec.arts.animation: Scooby's been called the Beast from Revelation [take it from a theology major, that's NOT a compliment] and Shaggy's been accused of being a doper. I rather like the comment that the show is "the animated equivalent of Spam." Zoink! Sonic #39 [Oct 1996] Spaz/Harvo cover: "Mecha Madness begins here." Personally I can't understand why Mecha-Sonic has the fan following that he appears to have. Still, he's getting his shot and it starts off with yet another potential poster for a cover. "Rage Against The Machine" [five parts!] Story: Mike Gallagher; Art: Pat Spaziante Welcome to "Wild Kingdom." I'm Jack Hannah. Today we observe the Mobian hedgehog. It's well-known that hedgehogs curl themselves up into a ball to discourage attackers. This behavior is also useful when throwing tantrums, as Sonic appears to be doing when a decision by the Freedom Fighters meeting in session doesn't go his way. Sonic has just proposed that he allow himself to be roboticized with a neuro-override to counteract the effect on his mind so he can trash Robotnik. Freddy Mendez's editorial box doesn't exactly say "Been there, done that," but does serve to remind us of the plot of "Steel-Belted Sally" [#29]. Rotor's objections are seconded by Bunnie, who literally puts her foot down. And when a partially roboticized rabbit puts her foot down you can read it on the Richter scale. Realizing he's got about as much chance of his plan being accepted as Pat Buchanan has of being the Republican candidate for President, Sonic storms out of the meeting. Anyone else notice the piece of paper with the words "is a dweeb" attached to Antoine's nameplate? We may have some dissention in the ranks, but Antoine's offhanded questioning of Sonic's loyalty draws a sharp rebuke from Sally. To work off his frustration, Sonic heads for a "new training facility" in the Great Forest, conveniently located next door to the "Knothole Jail". Make that SERIOUS dissention; the existence of such a structure not only has never been hinted at before, but seems kinda incongruous when we're talking about FREEDOM Fighters. Anyway, Sonic no sooner walks in the door than he goes through the quick cooldown routine: Nack the Weasel drops a barbell on Sonic's head and the blue dude does that stars in the eyes thing. Why didn't Nack use an Acme(tm) anvil and make it official while he was at it? Picking up the plot of the Triple Trouble issue where he left off, he ties up Sonic for delivery to Robotnik. Upon arriving at Robotnik's, Nack informes the big guy that he won't turn Sonic over until he's been paid. He also asks for a company car, his own dressing room and $100,000 per episode. Robotnik's counteroffer is that Nack gets to leave Robotropolis alive, and he brings in a giant Crabmeat bot as a dealmaker. Nack sees the fairness in this arrangement and goes off to represent the cast members of "Friends" in contract negotiations. Without further ado, Sonic is transformed into Mecha-Sonic. His assignment: level Knothole. OK, now we get to the good part. Mecha-Sonic's initial attack is blunted when he's confronted with multiple holographic images of the Freedom Fighters to shoot at. And who should arrive on the scene but a seriously- upgraded Bunnie as this starts looking more like a Mortal Kombat plotline. Bunnie's upgrades appear to include the ability to fly and a dictionary of Southern cliches. She advises Mecha-Sonic to "surrender like the Yankees at Chickamauga" but Mecha-Sonic reacts by doing his one-robot impression of Pickett's Charge. Bunnie telescopes her legs and gets out of the way. While the bot and the rabbot move on to a re-enactment of the battle between the Monitor and the Merrimac, Sally puts in a call for help, which Tails relays from Knothole in a burst of technobabble. By the end of the page Sally is speaking in tongues herself. And now's a good time to pause and catch our breath. You may tour the Sonic Art gallery or while away some time scouring the "Find Your Name In Print Page." Don't forget to visit the gift shop. Back to the story. Robotnik has been monitoring the fight. Apparently inspired by that lightning rod bit in "The Rise of Robotropolis..." [#38], Robotnik sends a current through Mecha-Sonic and into Bunnie. Though dazed and quoting Tennessee Williams, Bunnie tries putting Mecha-Sonic out of action with a "pulse cannon". Makes me long for the good old days when the Freedom Fighters were going up against SWATbots armed only with slingshots and paint balls ("Sally's Crusade: The Quest", In Your Face #1). Mecha-Sonic decides to wrap up this Civil War re-enactment by playing Sherman to Bunnie's Atlanta. She hits the ground in considerably worse shape than Kelli Skrug after her second vault in the Olympics. Now there seems to be nothing standing between Mecha-Sonic and a soon-to-be flattened Knothole. Tails, meanwhile, has been briefing a familiar silhouette: Knuckles. Propelled into the air by some sort of ejector mechanism, Knuckles may not have any fancy weaponry but he does have a grudge against what used to be Sonic. The confrontation, however, is predictably one-sided. With both Bunnie and Knuckles out of commission, Sally orders "Operation Last Resort" -- and I don't think she's talking about retreating to Cancun. Now THIS is more like it, campers! You've got Spaziante's amazing artwork and a linear script by Gallagher that's easy on the quips. Though some of the lines are unforgivable. Sally's spouting of babytalk, for instance. I thought this bit about treating Tails like a kid was wrapped up in "Southern Crossover." Also, Sally's always struck me as having way too much class for that sort of thing. The ONLY way I could see it happening would be if Sally got an earful of Tails' speech in the {preceding} panel and (with a broad wink) decided to bring him down one shoe size. In any event, we'll have to wait until the Mecha Madness special to resolve this plot. And considering that this issue only just hit the local comic stands this past weekend, I have to hope I'll get to see it without ordering it. Come to think of it, I NEVER DID receive Sonic #38 in the mail! Archie Comics, better run a Level One diagnostic on your distribution system. Sonic-Grams: my initial reaction to Eric Kessler's dedication to Richard Egner: "Gee, who died?" Probably refers to some intern moving on within the company, though I speak under correction. Fred pumps the Mecha Madness issue, which will also feature a Forty Fathom Freedom Fighters story and a Chaotix solo shot. In response to one letter, Tails is credited with attaining an altitude of 1,000 feet, Sonic lists a top speed of Mach 2 as a hedgehog, Warp 1 as a bot, and they get it all wrong when asking if Sonic or Tails is related to Sally--it's Sonic and Tails themselves who relate to each other like sibs. Brian Edwards asks if Sally will get her own series; while Sonic professes that Sal isn't interested, those of us who have read Ken Pender's posts about reader demographics know better. Once more, Sonic's speed is attributed to the fact that he was "born that way." All in all, the coolness of this issue has been amply justified. Double-bag this one while waiting for the Mecha Madness special to hit the stands. I'll be waiting to see IF it hits the stands. In one place around here there were still issues of #35 for sale when #37 first came out, and to this day another store has an orphan copy of Sonic & Knuckles #1 in its comic rack. Better make that a Level Two diagnostic! Sonic & Knuckles Mecha Madness Special #1 [n.d.] Cover: Spaziante has done some excellent covers for Sonic comics. In fact, it appears that about four of them appear on the front of this issue. I know Ken Penders has said that Spaziante's art can sometimes go beyond the linear, but this is a bit much even for a die-hard Spaz fan like myself. "Mecha Madness" Story: Mike Gallagher; Art: Pat Spaziante [Caution: entering deconstruction zone. Expect to encounter major plotholes for the next 6 paragraphs.] Picking up where "Rage Against The Machine" [Sonic #39] left off, Mecha-Sonic has beaten up Bunnie and Knuckles and is now trashing Knothole. Gallagher, in the first of numerous instances of careless writing, tries to reassure the reader that Knothole has been evacuated and the damage is "structural." Fine, but when your "structures" consist of simple thatched-roof dwellings, we're still talking major urban renewal here. Anyway, Rotor brings out a grisly little souvenir from Sonic #3: the "Port-O-Bot" roboticizer that made Bunnie what she is today. While Rotor expresses some hesitancy at fighting fire with fire, Sally starts raving uncharacteristically and rather ruthlessly. In the hope that we won't notice how out of character she's getting, Knuckles regains consciousness. Unfortunately, he's still punchy from his encounter with Mecha-Sonic and so he comes up swinging. He decks Antoine and almost knocks Rotor out before Sally gives him a boot to the head. Apparently, the best way to come to one's senses after being beaten up is to get beaten up some more; the old "hair of the dog" theory, I suppose. The two of them then exchange implausible pleasantries, implausible because they speak of a time when Sally and Knuckles knew each other before Robotnik. It's been well-established (except for Gallagher, apparently) that Robotnik took over Mobius when Sally and the rest of the gang were about 5 years old ("Blast To The Past," Part 1), so there could have been nothing romantic about those old times that they so fondly recall in the kind of really insipid dialogue we haven't been treated to since "Growing Pains, Part 2" (Sonic #29). Yet insipid dialogue with romantic undertones is apparently just what the veterinarian ordered, as it causes Bunnie to come to. Anyway, Gallagher gets back to the plot as Sally hands Knuckles a neuro-overrider and he dives head-first into the roboticizer, despite Bunnie's warning that roboticization can put a "cramp" in one's social life. Uh, the word is "crimp" not "cramp", Bunnie, but never mind. Rotor starts singing a hymn, but what's one more implausibility at a time like this? Back at what's left of Knothole, Tails has overseen the evacuation of the village and, realizing that he's been targeted by Mecha-Sonic, decides that this is a good time to make himself scarce. Mecha-Sonic, in a brief but noteworthy sequence, can't quite bring himself to blow his little bro out of the sky. This moral dilemma is interrupted by Robotnik, who tells Mecha-Sonic to just radio in the coordinates for Knothole so he can level the place himself with... OK, Gallagher has done some stupid plot turns in the past. "Let's Get Small" (#33) with its "French Frirus" enemy was really bad, and how he got Tails out of the Roboticizer in "Growing Pains, Part 2" was incredibly dumb. But to have Robotnik glibly talk about literally nuking Knothole with atom bombs is just plain unforgivable. Gallagher proved in "Let's Get Small" that he couldn't make the jump from storytelling to science-fact and this only confirms it. I'm sorry, but this is where Gallagher lost me as a reader, only because I know too much about what nuclear weapons can do. As much as I wanted to be able to suspend disbelief while reading the remainder of the story, I simply couldn't. OK, I got that off my chest, and Mecha-Sonic suddenly has Mecha-Knuckles on his fanny before he can radio in the coordinates. The two of them reprise the same stalemate they danced to in "Crash of the Titans" [Super Sonic v. Hyper Knuckles special #1], including a VERY impressive two-page spread of them duking it out. Bear with me, the plotline gets complicated here: Mecha-Sonic punches Mecha-Knuckles with sufficient force to send him in the direction of Robotropolis and (what's not quite clearly spelled out) into the path of the nuclear missiles. Mecha-Knuckles, however, draws Mecha-Sonic toward himself with a magnetic field so that they both connect with the incoming warheads. As impressive as Spaz's artwork on page 15 might have been, there was no way I could have taken it seriously as an atomic blast. Robotropolis is a wreck, but Gallagher conveniently never broaches the possibility that any Mobian worker-bots (including Uncle Chuck) might have been destroyed in the blast as well. The Freedom Fighters in the outskirts seem to have been miraculously spared the standard nuclear firestorm which is the aftermath of an atomic blast, as were both Mecha-Sonic and Mecha-Knuckles, though they're much the worse for wear. Mecha-Knuckles retrieves Mecha-Sonic and, after some exposition that's at odds with the facts from the TV show concerning the consciousness and will of someone who's been roboticized (about which more later), he catches up with the rest of the Knothole gang. Fasten your seat belts; from here on, the ride gets REALLY bumpy! Mecha-Knuckles is taken to the old roboticizer to be deroboticized; apparently, it has a "reversal system" that nobody thought of using on Bunnie at the time, or even now. While Mecha-Knuckles is in the oven, Nicole has run a diagnostic that drags us all the way back to Gallagher's last effort, "Ring of Truth" (#35). Nicole lets it be known that when Sonic grabbed that billionth ring and went through all that hoo-ha with the Ancient Walkers, he managed to acquire an "internal shield" (courtesy of Deus Ex Machina Internal Shield Company). Despite the merely "structural damage" to Knothole, Rotor no longer has the equipment to try reviving Sonic, and apparently it doesn't work if you were roboticized in some other contraption. Nicole then asks to do the job itself; the sequence on page 24 is impressive if once more implausible. Knuckles, himself restored, "flies" home, thus indicating that the "ejector" unit in "Rage Against The Machine" was a waste of time and an inconsistency in the story. So now it's time for the happy ending, right? Wrong! Sonic is busted for treason: i.e., for allegedly disobeying orders and going ahead with the plan he'd proposed back in the beginning of "Rage...." This is the set-up for issue 40's "court martial of Sonic" plot, and frankly it's even more implausible than the whole atom bomb business. For one thing, Sally has not, as far as anyone knows, declared Knothole to be anything more than a resistance group fighting against Robotnik. Technically, even if she were of age she'd have no legal standing to invoke any of the old Mobian laws unless she had declared herself to be the head of a government-in-exile, which as far as I know she has never done. She is, after all, still holding out for the return of the True King, her father. Then, too, Uncle Chuck clearly stated in the "Sonic Conversion" episode of the TV series that roboticized Mobians are aware of what's going on around them: "we just can't do anything about it." Sonic even demonstrated this by his hesitancy to shoot Tails several pages back. A first year law student could get Sonic acquitted of the charges. If you ever saw the film "A Fish Called Wanda" you know the scene where Kevin Kline says : "DisapPOINTed!" That's my verdict on this story. Once more, as with "Growing Pains," Gallagher starts out strong only to falter badly coming out of the backstretch and heading for the finish line. Gallagher started well with "Rage..."; he was trying to go beyond the merely jokey and write in the spirit of the TV series and he had a simple, linear plot line to work with. By the SECOND PAGE of "Mecha Madness" when Sally is talking like some kind of drill sergeant, I got the sense that the train was going to jump the tracks. Ken Penders has stated that, in the past, stories which had involved two sets of art (Manak/Mawhinney works such as "When Hedgehogs Collide", #21) ended up that way because the artists and writers had to meet deadlines. I'm beginning to think Gallagher needs a backup writer for when he runs out of gas toward the finish. And Heaven help us, it's not over! So much for the story, as for the artwork, it was great art in the service of a deteriorating storyline. And Spaz continues to provide the most amazingly erotic rendering of Sally. Others range from the cute to the moving. But Ron Bauerle's point is a good one: do we need to see the back of everyone's throats when they have their mouths open? "Robotnik rules" art. As if. "Don't Let The Island Hit You On The Way Down" Story: Kent Taylor; Art: Harvey Mercadoocasio (debut) The writer of "The Rise of Robotropolis..." (#38) teams up with long-time inker Harvo on a story taking place on the floating island. We arrive in the middle of what looks like the equivalent of a Royal Rumble wrestling match: the Chaotix are getting beaten up by some unheralded invaders: Charmy Bee is knocked out of the sky by Predator Hawk (no relation to Studebaker Hawk -- considering the number of lame puns on display in the rest of this issue, I thought I'd get you in the mood), Mighty is knocked out by Guerrilla Warfare (guess what kind of animal HE is?), Lightning Lynx (who looks like a Gremlin) attacks Espio Chameleon, and Flying Frog gets the drop on...whoever the croc is, I forget the name. That takes up three pages; "Suddenly" (these things always happen "suddenly") the Chaotix wake up and do the House Afire(tm) routine on the others. And it only takes them ONE page; that's how you know they're the Good Guys. The match is interrupted by the appearance of "the former ruler of Mobius", Mammoth Mogul, who stylistically bears a striking resemblance to a bit player in a _manga_ by Osamu Tezuka. Having been exposed to the energy of a Chaos Emerald, he had achieved "limitless power" and the key to the executive washroom. Apparently Limitless Power isn't all it's cracked up to be because he was eventually dethroned. Anyway, over the millennia (with two "n"s, get it right!) MM says he has discovered the true power of the Chaos Emerald embedded in the head of his walking stick, and he is now ready to snatch the floating island's emerald, make a play for Mobius and oust Robotnik. Which sounds good on paper, but one frontal assault from the Chaotix and he's retreating to rethink his strategy over the next few centuries. Being immortal, you can afford to be lazy like that. Serviceable artwork, with (as I said) some Japanese influences, in the service of a standard Set-Em-Up-Knock-Em- Down-He-Who-Fights-And-Runs-Away plot. For a villain MM is too much of a pushover. All talk and no action. Reminds me of Pat Buchanan. "Eel of Fortune" Story: Gallagher/Art: Dave Manak Gallagher returns to the medium he appears to be most comfortable working in, God help us, as by popular demand (Hey, *I* demanded a spin off comic for Princess Sally, but did they listen?), the Forty Fathom Freedom Fighters from the Tails Miniseries "Southern Crossover" do five pages of jokey shtick. The plot in a clamshell: freedom fighters meet new villain (Eel Capone), freedom fighters defeat new villain. Lotsa bad puns, a stupid ninja angle, I've wasted too many electrons on this one already. Coming attractions: Sonic's court martial in #40 (and the Nack is back); in #41 Geoffrey St. John makes a return visit as we take another run at the Zone of Silence/Void/King Acorn plot from "Heart of Darkness" (#36): "Daddy, whom would you rather have as a son-in-law....?"; yet another 3-parter (I haven't even seen issue 1 of the Knuckles 3-parter yet!), "The Death Egg Saga." Looks like the Death Star to me. If Gallagher ends up working on this one, rest assured the Farce will be with us! Knuckles Miniseries [Jul-Sep 1996] "Rites of Passage" Story: Ken Penders and Mike Kanterovich; Art: Art Mawhinney Grab your coats, gang, we're going to the movies! Anyone who wonders whether film has an influence on popular culture would do well to read this story, which contains a fair number of film references. Hey, this isn't the first time it's happened: remember the eleven scattered reference to [mostly Beatle] song titles in "The Good, The Bad, and The Hedgehog" [Sonic #11]? In the starring role is "Sonic's friendly nemesis", Knuckles. Sure, it's a mouthful, but how else do you explain to the kids that a) Knuckles rates his own miniseries, despite the fact that b) every time he and Sonic are in the same time zone they try to pound the electrons out of each other? OK, we're here. This theater has everything, even a video game in the lobby. Oops, my mistake, that's an ATM so you can withdraw $20 in case you want to buy a tub of popcorn and a box of Sno-Caps. Change? As if! The story starts off simply enough: Knuckles has entered the Grand Conservatory and has to avoid a fair share of booby traps [Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade]. This he does with style, including a VERY nicely-done two-page spread where flames, bullets, shurikens, etc. are all headed his way. After that splashy action sequence, we put on the brakes for a two-page exposition of the plot. Good thing, too, because this story started way back with "The Hunt Is On" [Chaotix Special #1] which began, what, only about SIX FREAKIN' MONTHS AGO!!! I know that three of those months were spent running in place story-wise, but c'mon! We cover that development, fast-forward through "Fathers and Sons", then cut to the chase of "A Sense of History", the 3-parter that was the prelude to all this. Everyone understand the plot? Don't worry, this isn't the first time our memories will be refreshed. Flashback's over, cue the Knuckles-Being-Chased-By-A- Boulder-In-A-Direct-Quotation-From-"Raiders of the Lost Ark" scene. A nice three-panel progression on page 8 of Knuckles trying to stay one step ahead of the boulder doesn't negate the fact that Indiana Jones is fully entitled to say "Been there, done that." What took me a while to figure out on my first read, however, is that page 8 also begins a split-screen sequence; once you know what's happening, it works well. Anyway, Knuckles manages to avoid becoming roadkill, and discovers a "concussive blaster" in a nearby storeroom. Using it to punch through a doorway, he hears Archimedes' earlier taunt and begins following it. INTERMISSION: Sonic/Tails artwork. Mother Of The Year honors go to Dorion Barill's mom for stitching together a Knuckles costume. Knuckles traces the voice to a room where the Chaotix have apparently been partying since their abduction all those months ago. While considering renegotiating his contract, Knuckles spies Archimedes, who turns out to be a fire ant standing on the table. To better see him, he speaks into a video camera and his image is shown on the back wall [Wizard of Oz]. He also apparently shops at the Paul Hogan "Crocodile Dundee" Boutique because he's decked out in an Australian digger-style hat, vest and a necklace of...hmm, what kind of teeth ARE those, I wonder? After a quick demonstration of his ability to disappear and reappear in a puff of smoke [remember that -- it's important to the plot], as well as his knack for breathing fire, he starts to cop an attitude because "my people have pulled echidna fat out of the fire more times than I can count." This is no way to get on Knuckles' good side, but before the echidna can call the Orkin Man, who should appear but the mysterious figure from the split screen sequence. He announces that Dmitri "is no more." He has a new look; some have called it Egyptian, but from here the mask looks more African than anything else (Memo to the Ancient Walkers: THIS is the kind of look you should have been aiming for!). For me, the effect is spoiled by the fact that Dmitri has rechristened himself with the unfortunate name "Enerjak." Still, like the Wing Dingoes of "Southern Crossover" the look is impressive even if the name is a little on the stupid side. Knuckles and the gang attempt to rush him and are hurled aside by a single gesture (Memo to Kent Taylor, with a carbon copy to Mammoth Mogul: THIS is how a being with limitless power is supposed to act!). While keeping the Chaotix, Enerjak hurls Knuckles and Archimedes out into the middle of a desert waste. INTERMISSION: Map of the Floating Island: Don't know anything about the game zones, but it's nice to have if you want to write any Knuckles fanfic and need to get your bearings. Now we know where John Ritts got the idea to ask for a map of Mobius in his letter in Sonic #40. And speaking of stupid names, whose bright idea was it to christen the Letters column "Knuckles Sandwich"? Letters establish that Knuckles is 15 (that's 16 in DiC years) and that the barbs on his gloves really do grow out of his hands. Wonder if he's tried soaking them in dishwashing detergent? KNUX II: THE SEQUEL: How much trouble can Knuckles and Archimedes get into in the middle of nowhere? Plenty, if you're about to become lunch for that latest desert cliche peril: the giant sandworm [Dune, Beetlejuice, Tremors; face courtesy of Alien]. Anyone else catch the tribute to Bob Clampett on page 4? Utilizing a convenient rock and his disappearing shtick, Archimedes makes short work of the foe and that evening our heroes sit down to a repast of grilled sandworm, yum yum. Time for the next flashback: Archimedes needs three pages to inform Knuckles that ants helped loosen the foundation of Echidnapolis so that it could become the Floating Island -- does this mean that the Chaos Emeralds are overrated? Anyway, Archimedes cycles through the rest of "Sense of History", followed by a quick cut to Dmitri/Enerjak beginning to reconstruct Echidnapolis, now bearing the snappy new name "Necronopolis." All this happens in split screen (again); as for Knuckles and Archie (hey, even though it's supposed to be pronounced "Ar-Key" we know you can't spell "Archimedes" without "A-R-C-H-I-E", right?) they throw in a comic relief bit where a delirious Knuckles mistakes Archie for a spicy meatball, with predictable results. Knuckles, faint from heat and hunger, then sees a vision: his father appears before him [Hamlet -- OK, THAT one is a stretch!] who tells him that he must be brave, that Enerjak can be defeated, and that he must take his place in the Circle of Life [The Lion King]. Oh, and did I mention the oasis over the next hill? After some brief R&R, the oasis vanishes. We hope you enjoyed your visit to Deus Ex Machina Resorts; please come again. Knuckles and Archie don't have time to debate much about it because the city that Dmitri/Enerjak has been conjuring up during the split-screen looms ahead of them. INTERMISSION: Knuckles art. Consider it a short art film. Despite never having been to the place that I know of, Knuckles recognizes the place as a "dark, corrupted reflection of Echidnapolis." We then get to see "Enerjak's Citadel" [while the audience gets bludgeoned to death with references to "Wizard of Oz"]. Knuckles comes out swinging [not a Tarzan reference], but soon finds himself surrounded by Mecha-Nauts (low-budget SWATbots). He takes cover in the Citadel, only to discover Dmitri/Enerjak's defenses consists of the Chaotix, who are under Enerjak's control. INTERMISSION: Map of Necronopolis, and a second Knuckles Sandwich. Candice White observes that the names of the Chaotix make identifying the characters rather difficult. KNUX III: THE FOREGONE CONCLUSION! And welcome to the Necronopolis Wrestling Federation's "Brawl To Win It All!" It's tag-team action with the Chaotix up against Knuckles and Archie. Archie starts with a fire-breathing offence he learned from Ricky The Dragon Steamboat, which Vector counters with a firehose. In the resulting steam, Archie and Knuckles disappear. After a quote borrowed from Lamont Cranston [The Shadow], Knuckles comes out swinging again. Less than satisfied with the performance of the Chaotix, Enerjak administers a remote-control sleeper hold that puts out the lights for Knuckles and Archie. With the hero out like a light, it falls to Dmitri/Enerjak to supply this issue's two-page exposition of the action, but not before a short INTERMISSION: more Knuckles fan art. Dmitri/Enerjak's account of the events starting with "Sense of History" is accurate but self-serving. By now Knuckles has come to, and (in the course of small talk) realizes that Enerjak is clueless about the oasis. He also nudges Archie into beginning our final split-screen of the series, by which in response to a telepathic command from Archie the ants come marching. Enerjak moves to finish off our heroes, but they pull that vanishing stunt once more. While Enerjak searches for his elusive prey and the Chaotix are called out, ants from the surrounding area converge on the Citadel. Knuckles re-enters the fray, and while he and Enerjak fight/banter, the ants are chewing away at the Citadel's foundations. Thanks to some rocket boosters that attached themselves to the Citadel from out of nowhere (courtesy of the Deus Ex Machina Jet Propulsion Labs), the Citadel takes off like...well, like a rocket. Knuckles and Archie manage to escape as Enerjak rockets out of sight. Speaking of out of sight, Necronopolis vanishes as well, leaving only the Chaotix as remnants. The Good Guys party down, the cloaked figure from "The Big Picture" (Sonic #33) is revealed to be Knuckles' father, who has apparently traded in his Luke Skywalker jacket for a Ben Kenobi robe, Knuckles quotes the curtain line from "Casablanca" and, in a final bow to "Star Wars," we get a final shot of the Citadel hurling through space, like Darth Vader's fighter. OK, we'll stick around for the closing credits: a layout of the Citadel, and a final Knuckles Sandwich. I have no real kick against the use of motion picture allusions in the story. Face it: the core audience for the comics isn't really primed for originality. If they can be eased through a story while leaning on the cozily familiar icons of popular culture (film, other comics, pop songs, etc.), who am I to say? Credit Penders and Kanterovich for not slavishly following film plot lines (though some references, like the "Oz" set-up outside the Citadel, was just heavy-handed enough to be unforgivable). In a way, it's good that the series arrived late. After the "Rage/Mecha/Court Martial" series with its uneven Gallagher scripts and shifts in artwork from Spaziante to Manak, it was good to settle back and watch the Sonic Comics A-Team in action. Ken and Mike have delivered a strong story, despite the delay in getting it launched. The action was plentiful and, once you got the hang of the split-screen layout, easy enough to follow. More important, the character of Knuckles had a chance to expand and it made the most of it. There was a hint in "Fathers and Sons" that Knuckles' problem-solving skills (When in doubt, punch it out) were due for an overhaul, and Archimedes proved an apt foil. His bag of tricks might seem meager (disappearing and breathing fire) but, hey, all Sonic has going for him are speed and attitude, and look how far that's taken him. Still, Knuckles actually broadened his character by the time the story was over; he was still Knuckles but not so much of a lone wolf. THIS was the kind of scripting that "Growing Pains" demanded yet never achieved. Mawhinney's artwork may lack the splash and dash of Spaziante, and is certainly not in the same league as Manak's cartooney style. It's a straightforward meat-and-potatoes kind of artwork, well-suited for this kind of storytelling. Though the design of Enerjak was a little confusing (try looking less like Dmitri, why don't you?), it was still powerful in its own right. All in all, an extremely well-done series. There have been recent rumblings about developments in the story in the coming months. If those developments are anything like the ones in this story (where not a whole lot changes fundamentally but broadens and deepens in terms of narrative and characterization), it will be a major improvement to the series as a whole. Anybody remember where we parked? #41 [Dec 1996] Cover by the "anti-Spaz." Ooooh, scary, kids! Seriously, another impressive cover. And what's really impressive is that despite the fact that everyone on the cover is screaming, Spaz shows only two out of a possible three uvulae. THAT's self-control! Don't ask me what that purple thing is next to Sonic's head; my best guess is it's the toe of one of Geoffrey's boots. "And One Shall Save Him." Story: Ken Penders; Art: Kyle Hunter [debut] Identify the source of the following line: "Since when was I ever subtle?" Was it: A) Sonic interrupting Robotnik yet again B) Ken Penders justifying yet another unbelievably heavy-handed movie reference C) My forthcoming review of "Sonic Live" to be followed by "Sally Dead" Sonic comes into Robotropolis to do some shopping, despite the damage to the city which is mentioned in passing and which has no bearing on the plot. Remember, Robotropolis has supposedly been hit by an earthquake ("The Fall of Robotropolis", Sonic #37) and nuked ("Mecha Madness"). Once again, despite all this, we don't SEE anything remotely resembling carnage on a massive scale, not even so much as a crack in the sidewalk, so the reader will be forgiven for not taking these story arcs seriously. Freddy Gabrie doesn't help by throwing in an editorial box saying that the city damage is "Nothing an earthquake...and a few bombs...can't take care of." Gee, Fred, I usually use that phrase to describe the solution, not the problem! Anyway, after a little five-finger discount, Sonic heads back for Knothole, where he and guest star Geoffrey St. John begin verbally sparring. Sally tries to break it up, and it falls to Rotor to get the plot back on the rails: it involves some kind of "neutralizer", presumably not the same thing as the "energy inhibitor"/bug bomb from "Heart of Darkness" (#36). Or maybe it is...this is never really cleared up. Despite Ken's having written both stories, the gears don't exactly mesh cleanly. Anyway, Sally's ready to undertake the mission to rescue her father by herself. Geoffrey suggests that, for the greater good, she stay behind and that she let him take a crack at it. Sonic suggests a change in casting, followed by Geoffrey's offering to settle matters by putting a crossbow bolt through Sonic's head. Take it easy, Ken, you'll get a chance to work out the ol' blood lust with issue #47. The two let their hormones take over and start slugging it out. On any other planet, such a confrontation between highly competitive males would be settled in the classic manner: drop your pants and get a ruler. But since this is Mobius, none of the males are wearing pants. Instead of acting on her first instincts and taking off through the portal while Sonic and Geoffrey continue their male bonding ritual, she breaks up the fight and ends up taking both of them along. Cut to the King verbally abusing some mutant toad who dropped by to audition for Worst New Character of 1996. The King then suddenly has a flashforward seeing Sally, Sonic and Geoffrey in an apparition that then disappears. Cut to the gang as they slam into a floating rock of some kind while Nicole works on her Mr. Data impersonation. They then are literally beside themselves; they catch a glimpse of the confrontation they had with the King five issues before. Nicole explains that Robotnik's tampering with the zone has caused a temporal rift to form, where they can witness events of the past as well as the future. If you're unclear on the mechanics of this, watch "All Good Things...". the series finale of "Star Trek: The Next Generation"; it's two hours well spent. So anyway, they then witness the King's first landing in the zone and his being made leader of the Imps (you know, the reptilian types who look like refugees from DOOM). They witness him being fitted with his suit of armor, but a solar wind of some sort separates Sonic from the group and puts him within striking distance of the King's lance. Fasten your seat belts; the ride gets really bumpy here. Sonic gets zapped back to Sally and Geoffrey who say he never left. The ones who are leaving, though, are the Imps, who are getting sucked into some kind of vortex. The group then figure out that the jet packs they brought along to maneuver through the zone are useless without a charge from the "neutralizer" that's supposed to stabilize the zone. Or something. Anyway, as a last resort, Sally and Geoffrey blast off with the energy from the neutralizer having refueled Geoffrey's jet pack. Sonic punches out Sally's old man...hey, he started out trying to put Geoffrey's lights out so why not keep things moving? Geoffrey then activates the neutralizer, which apparently still has some juice left in it. The trio returns with the King's limp body. Sonic orders someone to get "Doctor Quack" -- not a name that would inspire confidence. Maybe he should consider changing it to something that sounds more professional, like "Hugo Z. Hackenbush." Hey, Ken, how's THAT for a film reference? As we close, his condition is undetermined. RDB note: well, _I_ wouldn't have gotten the HZH reference... Sorry, Ken, I wanted to give this story a chance but it needs work. I LIKE the idea of temporal flux, don't get me wrong, but even though the events are as linear as can be expected in a time-shift plot, something still feels wrong about the story structure. For instance, aside from an offhand remark or two, the rivalry between Geoffrey and Sonic is forgotten when they're in the zone. Understandable, but maybe if Sally had gone in alone and Sonic and Geoffrey had to try setting aside their differences to go in after her and get the job done, the story would have had more of a hook. Not that the Kyle Hunter artwork is any help. After a few brilliant flashes (the bungee sequence, the first detailed drawing of Robotnik, the first appearance of the King in armor), his drawings go flat. The problem isn't just that, as Alessandro pointed out, the characters are drawn out of proportion. Their expressions take on a mask-like sameness after a while. Kyle settles on one or two facial expressions for each character and repeats them. And repeats them. There's none of Mawhinney's subtlety or Spaziante's extravagance. Geoffrey doesn't look particularly threatening when pointing his crossbow at the back of Sonic's head, nor does Sally seem moved by any kind of recognizable emotion when confronting her father in the zone or when looking down at his immobile form on the last page. Speaking of which, that last panel is a neat summary of everything wrong with the artwork: without a background, the expressions and gestures are revealed in all their emptiness. You might want to switch Kyle over to doing Chaotix until he gets the hang of it. Maybe he had to hurry to meet deadline, I don't know, but from expression to composition to gesture Kyle's drawings just deflate by the end of the story. It never comes anywhere near the creepiness promised by Spaziante's cover art. Sonic Art and Find Your Name: same old same old. Sonic Grams: Fred, you might not want to admit that the Death Egg miniseries won't disrupt the story's continuity -- you're not going to sell many copies that way. Reminds me of Anna Russell's celebrated statement about the close of Wagner's Ring Cycle: "And so we find ourselves, twenty hours later, right back where we started from!" Yeah, yeah, I'm going to order it anyway. Letters: Mobie [ :-P ] and Dulcy [ :-) ] will be making future appearances, and apparently #43 will be the Great Reconciler Issue where the past will be explained and clarified...just before the current scenario is abandoned in favor of the Brave New World set-up. Notes From The Net: THIS guy again!? He needs to get a life! Alessandro again supplied the best answer concerning the number of other Sega game allusions in "Rage Against The Machine": "WAY WAY WAY TOOOOO MANY!" RDB note: did he make that comment on the other list? Pat, I appreciate an inside joke as much as the next guy, and I know that Sega makes many other games besides Sonic. But as David Letterman might put it in his uniquely soft-spoken, urbane manner, "LET 'EM GET THEIR OWN DAMN COMIC BOOKS!!!" By the way, one piece of fan art, three names and one SonicGram came from Down Under. Nice to know we've got readers in Oz. Maybe one of them can volunteer to coach Geoffrey on his accent; it could use some work. G'day, mates. #42 [Jan 1997] Spaz cover: Since a Chaos emerald features prominently in the plot, think of this cover as Spaziante's salute to Chaos. Sonic's hands, head and feet are way too big in proportion to his torso; Rotor is in-line skating with no skates; Bunnie's mouth looks like it belongs to Carol Burnett; the only explanation for Sally's posture is that she must have left her spine in her other vest; and Antoine's left elbow is bending in the wrong direction. Should've saved this cover for an April Fool's Day issue. "In Every Kingdom There Must Exist A Little Chaos." Story: Kent Taylor/Art: Art Mawhinney Given the changes that will be happening to the story, Kent goes for stability and opens with a cozily familiar sight: Sonic and Knuckles trying to pound the snot out of each other. Freddy helpfully tags along and supplies information that we would have gleaned had we read the Death Egg saga--that story line may not have made a major impact on the plot line but it does leave a lot of small potholes in the road. In between blows, we learn that Robotnik tried yet again to filch Knuckles' chaos emerald and that Sonic knows about the spare one Knuckles acquired in "Crash of the Titans". He wants Knuckles to cut loose with the spare in order to treat King Acorn. Tails arrives and hastens along the exposition by reminding us that King Acorn has recently been rescued from the Zone of Silence but is suffering from an advanced case of crystalysis (kri-STAHL-uh-sis: the process of living tissue turning to crystal. I think I just made it up. No royalties; use it freely). In fact, he's turning into a Chaos emerald...or at the least, a Chaos monarch. Sonic manages to shut Tails up about some development from SonicQuest #1 (as a way to boost sales, no doubt). Knuckles, however, turns Sonic down flat. Back at Knothole, Sonic delivers some extra power rings to Sally and again muzzles Tails about something. The power rings having failed to revive the king, Uncle Chuck suggests some alternative medicine. Sal explains that she believes her father wasn't wearing the genuine crown of the Acorn kings when he was nabbed by Robotnik all those years ago. An ancient scroll is trotted out, which indicates that the true crown may be located in the Hall of Limbo. Next step: get a power ring and use it to fire up Sonic's brain cells so he can figure out how to get to the Hall. Early next morning Sonic, Sally and Tails rendezvous with the "spy network" from "Rise of Robotropolis". Sleuth, the McGruff the Crime Dog clone, arrives on the scene and almost immediately arouses Sally's suspicions. Guess what, campers: he's working the wrong side of the story line, as he brings in a welcoming committee of SWATbots, with a roboticized Fly Fly Freddy providing air cover. It looks like Sleuth's got the drop on the Knothole gang, but he gets dropped on by Bunnie instead. Unfortunately, everybody's so busy punching each other out that nobody's got a spare moment for retrieving a fresh power ring. Sonic makes time and just before he can be zapped by Freddy (the insect, not the editor), Knuckles drops in and takes out Freddy before you can say "Help me!" [mandatory movie reference for Ken Penders' benefit]. Sonic uses a move I've never seen before to finish mopping up the SWATbots and Knuckles presents Sally with the spare Chaos Emerald he swore 8 pages ago he'd never part with. One quick exposition from Uncle Chuck later, they try using the Emerald to restore the King to normal. No go; it only makes things worse. Before anyone can say "Well, that's 14 pages down the drain!", we realize that it's now up to Sonic to use the power ring to boost his brain with regard to the business about the Hall of Limbo. After a nice panel that reminds me of some of the artwork of the old posters for the Fillmore in San Francisco (if you have to ask, you weren't from the Sixties), he declares that the King's sword has something to do with it. Hey, try muddling the plot with even more of these mystical doo-dads. Scrolls, crowns, swords--what next, the royal Lava Lite? Knuckles touchingly volunteers to undertake the quest for the sword, telling Sally "You shouldn't have to lose your father twice." Uh, anyone want to break the news to Red about what the Princess is REALLY going to lose come issue #47? Sonic Art: Rabbot art by Rabat. No, it's not a failure of the spell-checker. Elysaar Khoury Rabat of Morocco supplies a drawing of Bunnie. Well, we've wrapped up the Chaos story and so, in the words of Bill Cosby, "I told you that story to tell you this one" as we immediately segue to... "Knuckles' Quest" Story: Ken Penders & Kent Taylor; Art: Art Mawhinney & Brian Thomas Very nice opening sequence in the first page revealing a very improbable development: Knuckles perched uneasily on an open seat attached to the side of the SeaFox, with Tails at the helm. What, Rotor couldn't have installed a proper sidecar? Couldn't he have at least attached a seat belt? How about one of those horse collar arrangements you see on rollercoasters? Anyway, Tails supplies over a page of exposition taking in "Tttriple Tttrouble," "Ring of Truth" and "Southern Crossover". Nice to see Ken & Kent have done their homework and anchored this story to ones that have gone before. Speaking of "Southern Crossover" that's Tails' destination: Athair's crater in Downunda. They eventually run into the old dude and if you thought things were weird up until now, strap yourself down. The Ancient Walkers reappear; this time, just the masks and no dinosaur suits. It helps. Knuckles and Tails get hurled past some faces that look like they belong on the Mobian equivalent of a deck of Magic cards: a black cat, a crow/raven and a goat who are supposed to be (respectively?) a "sorceror" [sic], a wizard and an alchemist, along with what looks like a disreputable Tails with a few years on him, a white rabbit and a horse in armor (a charlatan, an enchantress, and a paladin--THAT one you can look up yourself). The ride ends and Knuckles is determined to go it alone. Part of the declamation by the Ancient Walkers goes: "With patience and fortitude a blade of steel thou may embrace." Hmmm, "embrace" a blade of steel...OK, folks, place your bets: who thinks that the King's sword is going to somehow end up being Sally's ticket to the harp farm? I know that just about anything would have been an improvement over the mediocrity that was "And One Shall Save Him" -- OK, with the possible exception of "Sonic Shot II". But WOW! The crew at Archie has really kicked out the jams for this one! Despite numerous digressions and editorial boxes, Kent keeps the narrative moving with very few dead spots. And there's the saving grace of Mawhinney's artwork for when things threaten to bog down: nothing happens in the top panel on page 5, but the expression on Sally's face more than compensates. It's a crime that we haven't been getting this level of writing and artwork on a regular basis up until now, and it's all the worse because this current milieu only has eight more issues to run before the readers have a Brave New World thrust upon them. Just when the gang at Archie looks like they've finally got a handle on the OLD world! The story line, and the Sonic comics generally for that matter, have never been known for having a particularly high mumbo-jumbo quotient. Now all of a sudden we're up to our amulets in magical objects, rhyming prophecies and archetypal characters. Looks like I'd better keep my copy of Joseph Campbell handy again. I don't want to say that this was the only way the Archie gang could figure out to bring the Sonic saga to some kind of satisfactory conclusion--heck, I'm having to resort to it myself in my fanfic--but this far along they haven't made any missteps on a path that could leave the story looking rather ridiculous. Kind of like the business with the Chaos emerald -- after chasing after it for all those pages, it doesn't work anyway. But that's an issue for another issue. Sonic-Grams: only one page, with very little hype from Freddy. He doesn't even mention #43, all the while keeping our attention on the SonicQuest series and the Sonic LIVE! Special issue. B. J. Kvito of Worthington, Ohio, wants to see (among other things) stories about "Knuckles' and Sally's shared childhood." At the rate things are going, however, the only way that's going to happen will be in flashback, as Knuckles indulges in misty watercolor memories of the way we were.... Speaking of which, unless something's come up, #43 is supposed to be the major flashback/origins issue. THAT I want to see! But first I have to wait for SonicQuest to come in the mail and see whether Sonic LIVE! will hit the stands. #43 [Feb 1997] Spaziante cover art. Nowhere near as STUNNING as the inside splash page. One of the most moving Spaziante pieces ever! I'd really like to see it without the credits in the corner. And while we're at it, lose Geoffrey as well. What the heck, strip out Sonic too and you have a perfect Sally Memorial Poster. RDB note: and not an uvula in sight :^) "The Dream Zone" Story: Ken Penders; Art: Manny Galan and Pat Spaziante "Calling Dr. Howard, Dr. Fine, Dr. Howard! They're not available? Then how about just Dr. Howard The Duck?" C'mon, can't Galan draw ducks that DON'T look like that feathered loser? And how did a hospital manage to survive Robotnik's takeover of the planet? And why didn't the Knothole crowd get the King there sooner, like they said they were going to at the very end of "And One Shall Save Him" (Sonic #41), instead of wasting time experimenting with power rings and Chaos Emeralds? And most important of all, where did the good ducktor hire that nurse with Farrah hair in the background of the opening panel? Dr. Quack makes his opening borrowing not only Howard the Duck's look but Telly Savalas' mannerisms from the old "Kojak" series. This is never a good sign. In the hands of a lesser writer it's a way of saying to the reader: "I don't know what I'm doing with this character, I don't have a feel for his thoughts and emotions, so I'm going to superimpose someone else's identity on him, no matter how obscure the reference might be to the core audience, until I can come up with something." Of course, Ken Penders is one of the premier Sonic writers at Archie and he'd NEVER stoop to something like that. It would be as unforgivable as...oh, I don't know...as killing off one of the main characters to try to keep the readers off-guard. But I digress. Anyway, the best Dr. Q can do is try some cell regeneration pyrotechnics and hope for the best. As with the power rings, there's no change; unlike the Chaos Emerald, the King hasn't gotten any worse. The doctor absents himself while the Knothole crowd holds vigil. Sonic's question at the bottom of page 3--Is the King aware of what's going on around him--isn't answered (sort of) until the bottom of page 5. No, the Canadian printers didn't screw up the colors again. The pseudo-sepia tone is their way of saying "Cue the flashback!" Galan tags in Spaziante and the scene shifts to...Sonic and Sally as a couple of kids a la "Blast To The Past." In fact, much of the flashback is faithful to the canon (which is more than can be said for Part Three of this story, but we'll get to that in due time). Anyway, watchers of the series know that Julian of the War Ministry was supposed to be overseeing the dismantling of that department; he, however, has other ideas. Changing his name to Ivo Robotnik, he stages a coup. There are a few small deviations from the canon in the flashback. For one thing, Uncle Chuck is never credited with developing the Roboticizer (a project he abandoned when he realized that a roboticized Mobian's enhanced physical well-being would be undermined by a loss of free will; Julian simply stole the plans). In fact, Uncle Chuck gets no credit at all. Sally's nanny, Rosie, who puts in an appearance at the bottom of page [8], is somewhat off-model. And Julayla is somewhat more than somewhat off-model in her appearance on page 7! She bears NO RESEMBLANCE AT ALL to the Julayla who appeared in "In The Still Of The Night" (Sonic #18). Didn't Spaziante have access to #18 with its ELEVEN DIFFERENT DRAWINGS of Julayla's face? Didn't he think to ask Art Mawhinney if he possibly had a Julayla model sheet he could work from? Has Spaziante got something against cats? Still, even this lemon could have yielded some serious lemonade. If Sally's word balloon on the righthand side of page 7 had used the word "Mommy" instead of "Julayla" it would have made far more sense, would not have necessitated Spaziante's redrawing the panel, and would have given the fans something to talk about for months to come. RDB note: that's all I need, more e-mail :^) To kick off Part 2, Geoffrey St. John shows up for no other reason that to honk off Sonic; he doesn't even pretend to have any part to play in the story line other than to barge in looking for Sally so she can have another pair of arms to rush to. Not that the dialogue is any help in the coherency department; it constitutes about three pages of verbal wheel-spinning during which the Quackster informs us that he studied under Drs. (Ben) Casey, (Marcus) Welby and Frankenstein (that's "Fronkensteen!"). After wading through this, we arrive at Sally's conclusion that something's "bothering" her father but she can't say what. The Quackmeister concurs that the King is in an unresponsive stupor. Actually, it's a cue for the next flashback, wherein he remembers Robotnik's takeover and his own exile into the Void/Zone of Silence. This particular bad trip causes him, stupefied though he is, to cry out. So Quackerino trots out the latest in the long line of Improbable-Looking Plot Devices. Let's see, we've had the Neuro-Overrider that looks like a calculator battery ("Steel-Belted Sally", #29) and the Zone Neturalizer that looks like a household bug bomb ("Heart of Darkness," #36). So is it any wonder that the Quackmeister's Electroencephalographic Memory Inducer looks like a glorified gumball machine? I didn't think so. Despite the stated dangers of this kind of mind meld (too bad the Quackmaster didn't study under Drs. McCoy, Crusher and Bashir), there's no shortage of volunteers to make the trip. Sonic wins the (very dubious) coin toss, he begins journeying into the King's head and any semblance that we've been following the Sonic canon sails right out the window. Once more Sonic and the King encounter each other in space, only now the King has no trouble recognizing Sonic as Sir Charles' nephew. Sonic calls it a "wild, strange trip." That's "LONG, strange trip", Sonic, but I guess you aren't that much of a Deadhead. Before they can figure out how to get someplace recognizable, they confront the Warlord Kodos. You remember the Warlord Kodos, don't you? No? That's not surprising since there hasn't been word one about the dude since an offhand reference by Robotnik back in "Heart of Darkness." Kodos, who looks like Mobie the (yeah, right!) Cave Bear having a very VERY bad hair day, uses a huge battle ax to take a swing at the King. Sonic attempts a rescue and gets nowhere for who should appear but FEIST, some kind of giant skunk/badger/wolverine with glowing eyes. Hey, you can admit to being confused; we're all friends here. And the awkward placement of one of Sonic's word balloons in the middle panel of page 20 so that it can easily be mistaken for one of the King's word balloons doesn't help matters. Feist nukes Kodos, but before he can do anything to the King Sonic launches into some heavy (for him) dialogue; as he explains that Feist and everything else around them is just part of the King's memory, he starts using some pretty big words we're not used to hearing from Sonic, and he loses his hip argot completely. I suppose that all bets are off when you're roaming around inside someone else's head but in any other context this would be called "breaking character". Sonic briefs the King on current events and tells him he's got to struggle against the crystallization because "We need your experience and wisdom...But above all else, Sally needs her father." Yeah, to deliver her eulogy four issues from now! Sonic wakes up with a headache, the King's vital signs stabilize, and the blue dude misquotes Shakespeare's "Tempest". All in a day's work. I don't suppose there could have been anything else to do with the story line to justify a return to the events of "Blast To The Past" without yet another shot at time travel. I got the point--that the King needed to begin healing from the inside after all these months--but Ken didn't make it easy. Some of the bits with Quack (who's an even bigger candidate for Worst New Character than either Kodos or Feist) were really expendable. So was Manny Galan's artwork. I have been browsing the newsstand copies of "Sonic Quest" RDB note: so I assume your reviews will wait till you get your own copies? and was pleasantly surprised to see the quality of Galan's artwork improve from Part 1 to Part 2; the artwork on Part 2, Page 10 is VERY impressive! It seemed like he was taking Spaziante lessons. So I was UNpleasantly surprised to see the quality of his artwork take a tumble here. Sally's emotions as she ran to Geoffrey in Part 2 were unrecognizable. It reminds me of the deadness of Kyle Hunter's art in "And One Shall Save Him" (#41) which marked a new low in the quality of Sonic comic art; heck, that one gave me a new appreciation for the work of Dave Manak! This story was marginally worth it, the artwork was definitely NOT worth it (pseudo-sepia is not a good color for Spaziante); the whole production was eclipsed by the Spaz splash page that preceded it all. Sonic-Grams: Sorry, Fred, I DIDN'T enjoy "this little...concoction". As for his promise of a "roller-coaster ride" for Sonic #50: unless Ken's been teasing the lot of us and plans to resurrect Sally at the conclusion of "Endgame" it'll be a trip I'm going to make with a vast reluctance. Also a plug for Sonic #44: The Antisonic and the Antiknuckles come to Mobius. That's an angle I didn't think of when writing about the Antibunnie in my fanfic "When A Bunnie Meet A Bunnie" (available on finer Sonic Web pages). Betcha my Antisonic is more evil than yours; well, he's kinkier, anyway. RDB note: so how _does_ your story rate in the sex/violence category? I might want to check it out if it's PG-13 or less... Letters: Jacob and Jason Lower ask, among other things, about Sally's species. OK, people, it's clear that nobody's reading the FAQ File on this one and nobody's buying the line that she's a ground squirrel. We'll just have to wait until issue #47 in order to say once and for all whether she's a ground squirrel, a shot squirrel, a strangled squirrel.... #44 [Mar 1997] Cover by Spaziante. No, your eyes aren't playing tricks on you; there ARE two Sonics and two Knuckles (or should that be "Knuckleses"?) "Black and Blue and Red All Over" Story: Ken Penders/Art: Manny Galan Every now and then, a sequence from the comic comes along that perfectly encapsules the trend that the comic is taking. The first two pages are just such a sequence, and they don't bode well for Sonic. I usually save my in-depth analysis until after the synopsis, but this is too blatant to pass up. The story opens with Rotor showing off a weapon which...well, let's just say you gotta have some pretty poor self-esteem to be fooling around with something like this! He calls it the "Party-Hearty Quadra-Sonic Rock'N'Roller"; RDB note: shouldn't that have been "heartily"? let's just call it the "BFG" to save time. Rotor never gets a chance to use this monstrosity in the story, but Freddy assures us that we will see it in use soon enough. I don't know about anyone else, but one of the things that sucked me into the "Sonicverse" was a certain "romance" about the notion of a group of small, outnumbered and outgunned creatures taking on the likes of Dr. Robotnik and his SWATbots armed only with cunning, conviction, and occasionally with paintballs. The Knothole residents were never "technologically impaired" (to borrow a phrase from Weird Al's "Amish Paradise"), but they were closer to nature than Robotnik ever was. Rotor's digs were NEVER as high-tech as they've come to be in the comic, and in the SatAM show the weaponry never got more advanced than catapults and slingshots {with the occasional remote control explosive device). But it's clear that Archie plans a SERIOUS move away from the SatAM canon. Unfortunately, this also involves undercutting one of the defining characteristics of the Knothole Freedom Fighters. Arming the group is a step in the worst possible direction. And never mind the visual joke with the "Star Wars" vehicle in the background on page 2--what the heck is Rotor doing with a canister of poison gas (first page, third panel)? Let's get on with the plot synopsis before I get any more depressed. After an alarm signals that there's trouble on the Floating Island, most of the Knothole crew (guess who DOESN'T make an appearance) boards a plane. The "Hanger 18" joke didn't work when Art Mawhinney tried it in the Sally miniseries and Manny Galan can't make it work here, either. RDB note: good eyes - I didn't catch it... On the Island, Knuckles checks on the Chaos Emerald only to discover the Antisonic. In a serious continuity error, the Antisonic's shown wearing sneakers throughout the story instead of his customary engineer boots. Knuckles also runs into, and gets beaten up by, the Antiknuckles. There must be a poor continuity virus going around; Antiknuckles sports a beret which changes from blue to green and back again throughout the story. The only thing more changeable is his pseudo-Irish accent, which has to stand as the second-worst excuse for an Irish brogue I've ever heard. BTW, I'm part Chicago Irish myself, so I think I speak with authority on this matter. Knuckles gets knocked out and the two Antis leave empty-handed. Knuckles may have gotten the two Antis out of his dreads, but soon company comes calling as Archimedes and the Knothole freedom fighters show up in rapid succession (and, in Tails' case, SERIOUSLY off-model). Sonic recognizes the description of his old counterpart and an idea forms behind his baby browns (Note: isn't this the first time that Sonic has ever been depicted having eyes of ANY color other than black?). RDB note: again, good eyes! Quick cut to the Cosmic Interstate. Here we temporarily abandon the plot for a short interlude about how Sally met Knuckles. This actually fits the facts better than the mush Mike Gallagher tried passing off in "Mecha Madness". There's been some speculation as to what "rules of apprenticeship" may have been violated, but having been in the Boy Scouts I could figure it out easily enough. RDB note: as the/a resident nerd in school, I wasn't popular enough to make it past Webeloes... Every year at summer camp a couple of members from each troop would be tapped to undergo an indoctrination for something called "the Order Of The Arrow." One of the conditions of the ordeal was that you had to maintain strict silence for a 24-hour period. My guess is that by even talking to Princess Sally, let alone being seen by her, the young Knuckles must have violated some rule against contact with strangers. Sorry to say, I found this sequence to be the most interesting thing about the story. Knuckles also lets drop the information that his "quest" hasn't gone well; in effect, after several issues where the health of King Acorn has been of prime concern, we finally discover on page 11 that his condition hasn't changed and let's keep this story moving, shall we? They arrive on the world of the Antisonic. There's a brief recap as to what the place is about, though we don't see much of it or of the Antisonic's gang this time around. By the way, did you figure out who's been missing? Yep; once more in the Antisonic saga, both Bunnie and the Antibunnie are conspicuous by their absence. It seems that the Archie crew still hasn't been able to figure out whether Bunnie's counterpart would be partially roboticized as well. So (shameless self-promotion coming!) it looks like I've got that particular market cornered with my fanfic "When A Bunnie Meet A Bunnie". As I said, there's no one in sight until Antisonic and Antiknuckles show up and start beating up on their counterparts. Several readers have asked: "Why didn't Sonic remember that it was useless to fight against himself, as he discovered in "When Hedgehogs Collide" (#24)?." I've got a better question: "Why are Tails, Rotor and Sally just standing around like this doesn't concern them?" Then maybe Tails wouldn't have to complain about how boring the fight is getting, as he does on page 14. OK, let's take a break. Carey Brown's fan art is EXTREMELY interesting, but why did the Archie people color his "companion" Pepto pink? Remember, Archie insists on black-and-white submissions only so they're at fault for not knowing what color a female fox should be. Back to the action, which has taken an unexpected turn when the Aniknuckles drops both the pugilistics and his accent. I've read his speech at the bottom of page 15 several times and his motivation STILL isn't all that clear to me. Anyway, it develops that he's the Guardian of a Sunken Island on this world, and it's running out of air. Interesting concept, actually. One quick ride in a sort of shuttle later, the gang arrives at "Atlantinopolis" where they detect a sinister presence. Nicole takes time out from downloading an Alfred Hitchcock film and an Ayn Rand novel to give the gang directions where they encounter Dr. Robotnik. Not the benign Robotnik, but the crud from their old world. Seems he wants to use the Chaos Emeralds from the Antiworld to power some device that creates "interdimensional doorways" and to do so without alerting the Knothole crowd as to what he's doing. That way he could steal the Floating Island's Chaos Emeralds as well from the comfort and privacy of another dimension. But now that he's been found, he orders his SWATbots to send the furries out to sleep with the fishes. In trying to save his own skin, however, the Antisonic lets slip that he and Robotnik have been in league all along. The gang starts ganging up on Robotnik who begins praising the flavor of "roasted hedgehog" -- so THAT'S why we haven't seen Uncle Chuck lately! Anyway, both Knuckleseses (YOU know what I mean) use the resident Chaos emerald to bounce the weapon's beam back onto itself, sending Robotnik back where he came from. They do a quick restoration job on the air supply unit and the crew is returned to the surface. In his final scene, the Antiknuckles takes one more shot at his bogus brogue and still can't pull it off. As for Rotor, he's bummed that a scanner unit he deployed earlier proved to be useless. "BACK to the drawing board for YOU," Sonic says. Which is where this story should have gone. The basic plot was workable, but Galan's artwork was no help at all. Aside from Sally's flashback sequence, it was as lame as always. PLEASE, let Galan work on the Chaotix, let him do flashbacks (his drawings of the young Sally were far more appealing than his drawing of the adult Sally), but keep him away from the regular cast members! I know Art Mawhinney has been busy warming up for Sally's demise, but come on! And while we're at it, let's STOP and enjoy the MISPLACED emphases in Vickie Williams' lettering WORK. Just for fun, try reading the word balloons out loud and YELLING out the words that are heavily shaded, such as Archimedes' line "I HURRIED over as soon as I HEARD there was TROUBLE!" Or Sally's line: "We would TRAVEL to locations ONLY my father knew of!" Ending that last sentence in a preposition is the least of its problems. Next time, Vickie, try speaking the dialogue out loud so you GET a better SENSE of which WORDS to EMPHASIZE! Hey, you're in a business where a lot of people probably go through the day talking to themselves anyway. Sonic-Grams: Plug for "Knuckles; The Dark Legion". Freddy seems more concerned about the covers of the story than what's inside. He also speaks of the "future of Mobius" and "Endgame." He tries his best at hinting darkly at something; like the cyber-Mobians don't already know what's coming! Mobie's back in #45, and Knuckles' quest continues. And he gives over a whole paragraph to promoting "Sonic Blast", the Glorified Print Ad (a.k.a. "comic adaptation) for the new video game. Don't ask me what the game is about: I've been stuck in the second scene of the Jungle Level of Sonic 1 for Game Gear so long I'm beginning to feel like Robin Williams in "Jumanji". Letters: Freddy hedges on Amy Rose's next appearance and spells out the difference between "Metal Sonic" and "Mecha Sonic". "Notes From The Net" FINALLY gives out the address where to send e-mail. The "Sonic Checklist" not only features a 3D Sonic rendering and background signage in Japanese, but also (with no fanfare whatsoever) advertises the reprinting of the Princess Sally miniseries. They also offer a "Sonic & Knuckles" reprint for $3. Heck, for the cover price I got a copy of the REAL THING that had been languishing in the comic rack of a local Rite-Aid for over a year. Sonic Live! [no date] "The Last Game Cartridge Hero" Story and art: Ken Penders "It was a dark and stormy night." When you can use that sentence at the beginning of a review, you KNOW there are going to be problems. It looks like Sonic and Robotnik are finally going to go one-on-one, with an electronically zombified Sally in attendance. By the bottom of page three, Sonic has been blasted to particles by a half-dozen SWATbots. On the facing page, BTW, is an ad for the live action remake of "101 Dalmatians" with Glenn Close as Cruella DeVil. Ivo Robotnik, have I got a girl for you! Quick cut to Chez Penders, where son Stephen is complaining about HIS dying, at least in the video game sense. He and Ken's niece, Jessica, head off for school unaware of the gloved hand reaching out for them from the TV screen. On the other side of the glass, a frustrated Sonic tries making sense of his location. Quick cut back to Mobius where Robotnik prepares to do away with the rest of the freedom fighters. Quick cut back to the intermediate zone (get used to the jump cuts, gang). The kids return from school and Sonic senses someone at the other end of wherever he is. Unable to cross over to their side, he ends up pulling Stephen and Jessica into wherever he is. Once again, as in "The Dream Zone" (Sonic #43), Sonic loses his hip-cool vocabulary and begins speaking in tongues: "The surrounding energy surged to the point where I was able to make contact with you. Now the energy surges are coalescing at another point!" Sonic and the kids head for that other point, without benefit of a yellow brick road. As part of an economy drive, Robotnik plans to launch the remaining freedom fighters into orbit aboard the same rocket that will carry a "network of killer satellites" into orbit above Mobius. Sally, BTW, has been placed "in the rocket's lower level but I wouldn't worry about her." In fact, nobody gives her a thought for the next 17 pages. Sonic and the kids materialize on the rocket's scaffolding. The grudge match between Robotnik and Sonic is postponed while SWATbots take the two kids hostage. Sonic breaks out of the temporary stalemate and whisks Stephen and Jessica to the rocket's control room. While he tries to figure out how to abort the launch, Robotnik is left to contemplate the portal through which the three emerged. Sonic manages to stop the countdown by what amounts to sheer dumb idiot luck, but upon returning to the portal he and the kids get sucked in. Once on the other side, they find Robotnik, Snively and a bunch of SWATbots. They also find that Stephen and Jessica have been drawn in a manga-esque style with huge eyebrows; Jessica, however, lacks the big huge enormous eyes with gigantic pupils and about four highlights per eye. Seems Robotnik's been a busy little boy, bringing in several versions of himself from multiple universes to construct a gigantic robot of himself. Stephen guesses all this in a moment because he's watched so much "Star Trek"; Sonic is confused because of the reference to "Space Trek" which was probably done to placate the legal beagles at Archie and/or Paramount. The three are taken prisoner and end up sharing a cell with...well, they're never really identified by their full names. There's a black-haired guy named Mori and a blond named Jerry. Employees of Sega, I can only suppose. Meanwhile, Robotnik figures out that the "multi-dimensional portal to our world" was created by Mori and Jerry "in the act of creating so-called entertainment." Hey, it's ROBOTNIK'S phrase, not mine! Unfortunately, the Doctor doesn't have much time to gloat before the alternative Robotniks begin to turn on him. Meanwhile (got whiplash yet?), Sonic, the kids, and the Sega employees get busted out by what turns out to be a redhead in a walkaround Robotnik suit, possibly Jennifer Hunn of Sega in a thankless cameo. With a vast reluctance, Sonic rescues Robotnik from himself (or should that be "his selves"?). The only way to wrap up this story is to punch in an access code on a control panel that just happens to resemble a gigantic Sega game pad. Being a 90s kinda kid, Stephen knows the codes. The code shuts down the SWATbots; I tried it on my Game Gear and it didn't do a thing. The giant Robotnik...well, that never DID become a serious part of the plot any more than the killer satellites. After Jerry and Mori guess that they can send Sonic and Robotnik back where they came from, Sonic says farewell to the kids and makes the return trip. He happens to find Sally and Tails and the group having escaped from the rocket, about which more later, while Stephen and Jessica grab another game cart. They also get credit for their contributions on Freddy's "Sonic Live!" page, and they get drawings published on the Fan Art page, proving once again it's not what you know but who you know. This story was probably doomed from the moment Ken Penders took its title from the 1993 Arnold Schwarzenegger bomb, "The Last Action Hero." In that film, a boy named Danny (no relation) uses a "magic ticket" to find himself in the latest Arnold-style action movie. Whether or not it was an interesting premise for a film, the end result was a disaster. Most critics agreed that the film had no clear direction--it didn't know whether it wanted to BE an Arnold movie or a SPOOF of an Arnold movie. Something of the same aimlessness is on display in this story. When I first read the premise I thought it would go in either one of two directions: either real people would find themselves inside the world of a video game (as in Disney' "Tron") or else the game characters would find themselves in the real world (as in Woody Allen's "The Purple Rose of Cairo"). Ken ends up banishing everyone to a "neither world" which is neither like reality nor the games nor even like the animated Mobius. This was a fatal miscalculation. Introducing humans into the game grid might have posed some problems, but nothing that couldn't have been thought through. Bringing Sonic and Robotnik into the real world, however, would have been rife with possibilities. While Stephen and Jessica try to introduce Sonic to their lifestyle (in scenes reminiscent of E.T. discovering television and beer), Robotnik could decide to take over Earth. As a character from a video game he'd be in a position to do it, too. Since he and Sonic owe their corporeality to negative electrons striking phosphors on a TV screen, he could use his devious mind to figure out a way to tap into ambient electromagnetic energy and microwaves and make himself as formidable a foe as the shape-shifting T-1000 from "Terminator 2". Until Stephen and Jessica save the world using...refrigerator magnets. Seriously! The magnets would have a major disruptive influence on the electrons in Robotnik's body (something the kids would discover when Sonic is seriously weakened the closer he gets to the family fridge). So it's easy to imagine Stephen and Jessica, armed with a handful of tacky refrigerator magnets and hurling them at Robotnik like a couple of ninjas throwing shurikens, cutting him down to size and enabling Sonic to subdue him and return to their own reality. There were certainly a couple of stories in the situation that Ken COULD have told, and which would have worked far better than the one he DID tell. But neither improvements in art (having seen Ken's artwork in an issue of "Star Trek: The Next Generation" I know that he's no slouch as a portraitist) nor in writing could have corrected the most basic flaw in the piece. I've been regularly corresponding with a member of this list. RDB note: the _other_ list... Well, actually, he's been writing fan mail to Princess Sally and I've been sending them along ;-) . He has said repeatedly that his life on Earth is boring and that if he could get to Mobius he'd go there in a heartbeat. I don't think this impulse should be ignored as a manifestation that an individual needs to get a life. This, after all, is what's at the heart of fandom: the fact that fictional characters can become so real that people recognize them as distinct personalities. They consider them to be as real and as knowable as people in their own lives. In short, they CARE about the characters. This is nothing new; people have been feeling this way about fictional characters for centuries. Hamlet asks "What's Hecuba to him, or he to Hecuba?" when one of the dramatic players weeps for a fictional character. At some point, everyone has encountered in fiction characters who have taken on just such a reality, whether it's Huckleberry Finn, Walter Mitty, or Bigwig, Fiver and the rest of the rabbits in Richard Adams' "Watership Down." This is a valuable resource, it helps fuel such success as the comic book enjoys and, sadly, Ken Penders and Archie are squandering it. In looking back on this story, I was reminded of the words of a producer of another Hollywood film, "Heaven's Gate," which cost $35 million in 1980 and was aptly summarized in one review as "an unqualified disaster." In surveying the audience at a preview of the film, Stephen Bach realized that they were dead silent ("comatose with boredom" as he put it) because "not one of them had been made to CARE about what was happening on that screen." [_Final Cut_, p. 361, emphasis original]. Sonic fans care deeply about Sonic and Tails and, yes, they care about the soon-to-be-late Princess Sally. Had they been made to care about Stephen and Jessica or the Sega people to an equal degree, the story would have been different, certainly better. "The Substitute Freedom Fighters" Story: Rich Koslowski; Art: Art Mawhinney This is a prequel/sequel to "Last Game Cartridge Hero". Having watched David Letterman use a "monkey cam", Rotor devises a Walrus Cam; actually, it's a small video camera that attaches to his tool belt and which can send images back to Knothole. The team sans Sonic then heads out to deal with some approaching SWATbots, only to be captured instead. Meanwhile, in a special guest appearance, Larry Lynx arrives in Knothole. I came on board kind of late so I missed his initial appearance. But there's no way he can miss Robotnik's visage on a monitor in Rotor's deserted hut. Before Larry suffers a full-blown panic attack, he spots something on another monitor: a bunch of Mobians in training. He heads out there (don't ask me how he knows where to go to find them), and runs into Sally's old team from her miniseries, along with another one-shot creature making a cameo, Cyril the Eagle. He puts some SWATbots out of commission by relying on his jinx karma, which doesn't seem to affect the other freedom fighters. To make a short story shorter, they liberate Sally and the others from the rocket. In gratitude, Sally promotes everyone to B-Team status with Larry as leader. This is storytelling at its simplest: get from point A to point B nice and easy (despite a few bumps along the way). Art Mawhinney's visuals are perfect as always. The fact that Larry came back for this one and has been promoted gives me reason to hope that there MAY be a chance for the return of Fiona Fox. One further point about Art's drawings of Sally. She's looking good these days. In one sense, that's a bad sign. When Mad Magazine did their parody of the film version of Erich Segal's book "Love Story," they stated that the Ali McGraw character was suffering from "old movie disease". It's a condition where the more beautiful you look, the closer to death you are. By the time the Ali character is in the hospital dying, "the color has come back to her cheeks, the mascara has come back to her eyes, and her teeth have all straightened!" In a sense, Sally's beauty has marked her for death. "Knuckles Quest 2" Story: Kent Taylor; Art: Pat Spaziante [presumably; the credits sort of lump them together] In tracking down a lead in his search for the King's Sword, Knuckles finds a remote hut in the Great Forest. The owner, who apparently doesn't believe in keeping a watchdog, instead keeps a nasty one-eyed beastie called a Devil Watcher. Knuckles tries feeding him a felled tree, only to watch it disappear. Other security measures include two leopard-like Blood Beasts, a square- jawed Berserker with bigger pecs than Dolly Parton, a Grim Reaper and a dragon. Knuckles decides to try thinking his way out of this one based on the words of the Ancient Walkers from the previous story. Realizing that the one thing all these creatures have in common is that they're characters from Mobian fairy tales, Knuckles states outright that they're illusions and apologizes to his host for intruding. The creatures fade and Knuckles confronts the resident, Merlin Prower. Yes, there IS a family resemblance. Merlin identifies himself as a Charlatan, once in the service of the King (and now presumably retired). He says he doesn't know where the Sword is, but suggests that the Knuckster try asking someone in the Land of Dark, which doesn't appear on any AAA Trip-tiks. Fans have agreed that this is the best story in the issue, and it's easy to see why. They care about Knuckles getting the sword if it'll help the King to recover. And the fact that we're introduced to someone who's an obvious relative of Tails is an unbeatable hook. But does anybody else harbor a mistrust of Merlin? He is, after all, a charlatan. Charlatans are by definition those who claim to know more than they do. By extension, he may not be telling all that he DOES know. Does anyone else expect to see Merlin popping up later on, and in an unflattering light? Knuckles, given his unfamiliarity with the Knothole crew, unaware of the surname "Prower", and not seeing the resemblance to Sonic's friend Tails, doesn't make the connection. That kind of monumental cluelessness qualifies him to be a comic book publisher. Sonic Blast Special #1 ["Official Sega Game Adaptation!"] Once again, Spaziante favors us with a haunted cover. In this case, the ghost in question is Tails, who shows up transparently on the left-hand side for no apparent reason. In fact, on the copy of the cover that appears in the ad opposite the first "Find Your Name In Print" page, the image of Tails doesn't show up at all! The technique didn't help the Mecha Madness cover and here, while intended to balance the composition and give it some symmetry, it's simply a confusing add-on. I like the faux-reliefs of the Flickies, though. "Sonic Blast" Story: Mike Gallagher/Art: Art Mawhinney Snively, still smarting from having been stripped of the key to the executive washroom at the end of "The Death Egg Saga", deliberately sabotages a transmission from Robotnik to make sure that the Knothole gang can eavesdrop. While Tails and Rotor head for their respective submersibles, Sally takes the overland route and arrives at the "harbor" first. There, in a VERY nice 2-page drawing, Sonic is supposed to be kicking back and drowning worms. Instead, he admits to being miffed at Sally for changing her story about her and Knuckles between "Triple Trouble" and "Mecha Madness". Freddy's editorial box could also have mentioned the version in "Black and Blue and Red All Over" (#44) and gone on to say: "Yeah, I know it's a plot inconsistency. Hey, we're making this up as we go! You rugrats got a problem with that?" Anyway, Mawhinney then favors us with a GREAT close-up sequence while Gallagher shows that HE knows something about quoting from movies, too. The quote from Bogie and Bacall's "To Have And Have Not" feels kinda forced, but goes extremely well with the extreme close-up. OK, multiple choice time: During the close-up Princess Sally is: A. Bending over Sonic B. Sitting next to Sonic C. Kneeling next to Sonic D. Straddling Sonic [Note to Ken Penders: You've wondered out loud why nobody commented on the third to last panel of "Last Game Cartridge Hero", wondering if maybe you had been too subtle. You have to realize that Sonic fans are of two minds on this matter: either they don't want to deal with "mush" or (as in the conclusion of the "Doomsday Project" episode) they want to see Sonic and Sally engaged in some serious tongue-wrestling! Unless it's going to go somewhere and build to something major, subtle doesn't make it.] Before we can get a definitive answer to the multiple choice question, Rotor and Tails show up to make sure Archie stays within the Comics Code guidelines. Sonic comes on board and the boys head off to Flickie Island. Welcome to Flickie Island! No, that isn't your host, Mr. Dork; it's Robotnik and the only R&R he's here for is "rob and roboticize". He demonstrates his scientific knowledge by saying that the "flora and fauna bloom not with flowers, but with precious gemstones." I should HOPE that the fauna doesn't bloom; unless you're a Chia Pet, animals can't grow much that blooms. Stick with the bots, Ivo! The only local fauna, BTW, are the terminally cute Flickie Birds (or is that "Flicky Birds"?). In addition to having those baby heads with the big, appealing eyes, they have no natural enemies and are thus unafraid of strangers. So it's an easy matter for Robotnik (and they don't come any stranger than him!) to roboticize them and begin scouring the island for a Chaos Emerald. As our guys arrive offshore, Tails takes to the air to intercept what he thinks is a flock of friendlies. However, the Flickiebots don't treat him any better than the Wing Dingoes did in "Southern Crossover" and he dives into the drink. Which is actually pretty fortunate because the sea water serves to deroboticize the birdies. Tails is pulled aboard Rotor's bathysphere where he puts one hand behind his head in a weird gesture. That hand CAN'T belong to Sonic because HIS right hand is leaning on the bathysphere. Unless Sonic has grown a second right arm when I wasn't looking. Or maybe Tails is trying to dry himself off by doing the Macarena. For the record, Bill Mauldin once drew a cartoon for "Stars and Stripes" showing three guys and SEVEN HANDS clearly visible. You're in good company, Art. [Yet another note to Ken Penders: If you do subtle and it doesn't work, you'll soon discover that everybody's an art critic!]. After an implausible bit of business to confirm the effects of sea water on Flickiebots [I'm sorry, no matter how fast Sonic was working, the only kind of water that can act that way within the realities of molecular chemistry is the kind of water you get when the outdoor temperature drops below 32 degrees Fahrenheit], RDB note: plus an elapsed time of .0000000000001 milliseconds = 10^-13 ms = 10^-7 nanoseconds, and light travels at 1 foot/ns, and if that "water ball" travelled 20 feet, it was therefore moving at 200 million times the speed of light; I don't think so... Sonic leaves Rotor and Tails to deal with the Flickiebot flock while he skitters to shore. They arm themselves with supersoakers and Gallagher risks incurring the wrath of leathernecks everywhere with that "Semper Fi" gag. We take our leave of the birdbath sequence and follow Sonic inland. With the aid of a Flickie Bird, he comes across Robotnik as he discovers a Ring/"dimensional portal". After about three pages of toing and froing RDB note: during which Sonic only moves at _twice_ light speed; I just dropped a quasi-troll in a.f.sh wondering who was faster: Sonic or The Flash? wherein Sonic gives Robotnik a wedgie (actually, the more I think about it, the more in-character it seems), Robotnik jumps into the Ring with Sonic right behind him. The following two pages I'll have to assume are an accurate representation of the relevant level in the game. Nice artwork by Mawhinney in the service of crass commercialism. RDB note: er, as crass as the same thing in the "Sonic Look and Find" book? And someone will have to explain that "Is this the end of Rico?" gag to me. RDB note: "Ricochet Rabbit"? Anyway, just when it looks like Sonic has got this thing all wrapped up, he finds himself wrapped up in Robotnik's cape as the Big Guy goes after the Chaos Emerald. He finds it in the head of a giant stone Flickie Bird which COMES ALIVE when the stone is removed. As Ivo Robotnik wonders if Indiana Jones ever had days like this, Sonic has a bad case of deja vu. He's been there and done that when a Zone collapses. Giving himself a case of the shakes, he manages to bust out of the cape RDB note: just like The Flash would've done... and escape the Flickie Zone before it collapses. Robotnik manages to escape as well, but the emerald disappeared down a Flickie Bird's gullet. RDB note: huh? All that's implied is the bird bit Robotnik's hand to get him to drop the gem... He further discovers that the Flickiebots have all been deroboticized, the roboticizer he brought to the island has been smashed by Tails and Rotor, and the exoskeletal battlesuit that got trashed in the Zone was what got him there in the first place. Well, it hasn't been his day, his week, his month or...hey, you know how the tune goes! I'll be the first to admit that I approached this issue with a certain amount of fear and loathing. I thought the story idea would be too slight and that the end-result would be nothing but a glorified print ad for the game cart. I've never been so happy to have been proven wrong. This story worked for me! The narrative was strong and devoid of puns in favor of actual humor, so mush so that it was easy to forgive some of the lapses like the business with the waterball. This is Gallagher's best work to date, even eclipsing "Rage Against The Machine" which I HAD thought his strongest. And Mawhinney's artwork is as great as ever, even with that ambiguous hand bit on page 10. And I don't know if the Flickies are depicted here as they exist in the game, but they are a rare bird indeed: minor characters who have great breakout potential. I don't know who gets the credit for their design, but the more I look at them the more I can see that the four basic Flickies might each plausibly possess well-defined personalities (despite their limited vocabularies). My favorite is the lavender Flickie with the "pigtails", BTW. Brilliant, and a good reason to double-bag this one! Sonic Blast: What A Blast! -- I suppose one of the perks of working in the comics industry is getting to test-fly a game if you're going to adapt it. Don't rub it in, Fred. Another plug for the outsides and the insides of "Knuckles: The Dark Legion". I'm a little more interested in Knuckles bio than I am in the cover art. And #45 features the return of Mobie (so what?) and the continuation of Knuckles' Quest. We also see Sonic and Geoffrey comparing dental plans on the cover of #46, and get an (unexplained) sneak at part of the cover of #47. RDB note: I missed that the first time around; as I'll comment in my comments on #45, it didn't include _any_ upcoming covers, let alone 47's... "The T.U.F.F. Awards" Story: Angelo DeCesare/Art: Dave Manak I would have described this as "two pages worth of running in place" but that would have implied that those concerned actually worked up a sweat in the course of getting this done. It's a knock-off, pure and simple, something to fill two pages. The writing is a no-brainer. Ever since "Court Martial" Dave Manak has proved that he can do sustained artwork with a measure of quality; this stuff, though, reminds me of a _Mad Magazine_ Don Martin parody of Art Mawhinney's style. Sally had the right idea: pull the plug! Find Your Name In Print x 4: "Moronic" Melody Hillard? "Bugged Bunny" Story: Angelo DeCesare/Art: Dave Manak OK, when the first panel features Robotnik and Snively dressed up like they want to audition for the Waltz Of The Flowers, you get an idea of the tone. The plot itself isn't such a travesty--the two slip a homing device on the sleeping Bunnie expecting her to lead them to Knothole--but it's played for slapstick all the way. Likable if you're into that sort of thing. Wake me up for the Dance Of The Fertilizer Fairy. Fan Art And Then Some: Ever since the fan art section in #44 with a Pepto-pink female fox, I've supposed that it was for Archie's benefit that they accepted only black-and-white submissions. Nice to see that they've gotten with the program and then some! Favorites: Kelly Griner's drawing of Sally and Aura Moser's envelope art. As for Ginger Hartman's envelope art, too bad Archie couldn't have enlarged it a bit--it's a bear trying to read those word balloons! Speaking of bears, head for the hills cause Mobie's back in town. Personally, I'd rather commune with a Care Bear! #45 [April 1997] Spaz cover: A prophetic cover by Spaz. Notice all the munitions in the background? Keep them in mind while you're reading this bomb. "Guerrilla Thriller" Story: Angelo DeCesare; Art: Dave Manak Since I get the Sonic comics later than most on this list, I've had a chance to read some early comments on some issues when they've been posted. Early returns on "Guerrilla Thriller" have led me to ask myself: "Good grief, just how bad IS this thing?" It's that bad. Worse. Let's say right out of the box that the art is some of the worst I've ever seen ANYWHERE. But let's try to look past that and summarize the plot: After a one-page recap of Mobie's introduction, we lose sight of him for seven pages, during which the reader can pause and give thanks. An off-model Uncle Chuck overhears Robotnik and an off-model Snively plotting to establish a command center in the "Mobian Jungle". Because Robotnik has a serious phobia about the jungle, Snively suggests a scorched-earth device called the "Eco- Destroyer" which sounds like something he got at a Captain Planet garage sale. Uncle Chuck delivers the news to the Freedom Fighters in Knothole. Carefully study the two center panels on page 3, particularly the arms on Bunnie and Uncle Chuck. Is it me or are their forearms somewhat larger than their upper arms? This is straight out of Popeye Physiology 101! Sorry, I had promised not to digress and talk about the so-called artwork of this story. It ain't easy. The Knothole gang splits up in groups of two to warn the jungle dwellers. Once in the jungle Sonic and Rotor come upon a bunch of rare narcolyptus berries. Unfortunately Sonic had already sampled the strange fruit and was thus rendered "hors de combat" as Antoine would say. The fact that we've just come upon something that can slow Sonic down is the ONLY redeeming feature of the plot. Anyway, Rotor is the only one awake when look-alike gorillas (wardrobe courtesy of Rambo's of Beverly Hills) jump them. Rotor is set to work in the gorillas' jungle compound doing double duty in Weapons R&D as well as in the mess hall. Sonic tries making a deal, offering to give them military hardware in exchange for their freedom. He thinks he can pawn off some of their own stockpile of weapons as new stuff. But the scam doesn't work any better for Sonic than it did for the Mobians who tried it in my fanfic "Space Case" [Whoa! Plot gridlock!] Busted! Once again under lock and key, Sonic and Rotor are interrupted by a gorilla stampede as the great apes hot-foot it out of the compound upon the approach of the Eco-Destroyer. Snively shows up wearing a lampshade on his head. Just then reinforcements show up in the form of Tails, Bunnie, and the alleged hero of this spiel, Mobie. The gorillas who didn't run away are fast asleep since Rotor had spiked their rations with narcolyptus berries...hmmmm, didn't I see that plot twist in a Mr. Peabody cartoon? Anyway, before Snively can fire up the device, Tails flies up to the control room to distract him. RDB note: with a standard but still amusing "nyah" face... Sonic, meanwhile, has "loosened a few thousand screws and bolts" with a handy crescent wrench which just happens to be the right size! RDB note: actually, it was a combination wrench; a Crescent (TM, R) wrench is _adjustable_... The Eco-Destroyer falls apart, the gorillas apologize and the reader is glad it's over. I can just imagine the story conference at Archie for this one: "Let's see, we still need a cover story for #45. I know we're just marking time until "Endgame" but let's set up the readers emotionally for Sally's death. Now the hardcores over on the Net have been saying all along that the very idea of killing off Sally is ugly, stupid, and pointless. Let's see...ugly, stupid, and pointless. Hey! Let's do another story about Mobie! You remember Mobie, the cave whatsis? But we're under deadline here. Angelo, you've got thirty minutes to write it. Dave, you've got 30 minutes to do the art and Jay Oliveras will do the inking. Spaz, you've got an hour to do the cover. We'll just have to fax everything to the printers up in Canada and hope that those boneheads don't turn everybody orange this time!" If they HAD misprinted it and turned everybody orange, it probably would have made for a more entertaining piece. This thing is a mess! The inking looks awful -- way too thin in spots, as if some of the ink was erased along with the pencil roughs. Whether Dave was in a hurry or whether the Dave and Jay team just doesn't work is debatable. The story is basic enough to fill sixteen pages, but feels just as slap-dash as the artwork. The first comic of the year and already we have a serious contender for Worst Single Issue Story and Art for 1997. A kid could do a better job! How's THAT for a segue to... Fan Art: If it weren't for what's going to happen with #47, I'd suggest to Archie that they get someone on the next flight to Barcelona and sign up Eva Richarte Prieto at once! Not only does she do a VERY on-model Bunnie (more so than most other artists) but her drawing of Sally is simply GREAT! I wonder whether even Mawhinney could pull off that particular blend of cuteness and sexiness. If I knew anything about Web pages and scanning, I'd get that picture of Sally on there in a heartbeat. Find Your Name: the usual. "Knuckles Quest 3: A Land of Dark, A Knight of Virtue" Story: Ken Penders and Kent Taylor; Art: Ken Penders After failing to find the King's sword at the home of Merlin Prower the Charlatan, we find Knuckles performing menial labor for a shapely female rabbit. Must've seemed like a smart career move at the time. Actually, the change is so abrupt that Ken & Kent need TWO PAGES of exposition to fill us in--and when your story is only eight pages to begin with, you can appreciate how much has gone on since our last visit. Quick recap: met the Ancient Walkers (who are now merely disembodied masks), dead end at Merlin's, quick acknowledgment of "Black and Blue..." (#44), enlisted the aid of the Chaotix before being captured by the Sorcerer (a black cat, possibly the one named Hershey who's threatening to become a series regular) and the aforementioned Enchantress. Those of us with dirty minds can gaze at the last panel on page 4 and speculate as to what other kinds of "tasks" the Enchantress may have made Knuckles perform. OK, that's enough of that. Then comes an entire page where Knuckles does...NOTHING. Well, nothing on his own, anyway. The action resumes on page 6 when the horse-faced Paladin, "Sir Connery", storms the castle. And what do you wanna bet someone on the writing staff was watching a video of "First Knight" when they came up with THAT uninspired name? One flash from a magic sword and Knuckles is free of the spell of the Enchantress, which allows him to duel with the Sorcerer using equal parts cleverness and brawling. I'll spare you Sir C's exposition, except to say that his sword is NOT the king's sword; to stay on the path for THAT piece of cutlery, he tells Knuckles to find Mathias Poe (the raven wizard--like anyone who's taken American Lit couldn't have figured that one out!) and Damocles the Elder (who by process of elimination has to be the goat-headed Alchemist). They're supposed to be back on the Floating Island's "other caverns filled with chaos". OK, Knuckles, click the heels of your sneakers together and say: "There's no place like home, there's no place like home...." I swear, I really wanted to LIKE this one. The encounter with Merlin was a perfect set-up. But we've got more mystical archetypes, more dead ends, and way too much mumbo-jumbo by this point. In trying to make the series their own by cutting it adrift from the DiC set-up, I'm afraid Ken & Kent are going out too far on a long, thin limb. I'd like to know if any of the other readers even CARE about these new characters; I sure don't. Except for Merlin, and then only because I care enough about Tails to want to know what the connection is between the two. These characters are as stiff and two-dimensional as the cards in a "Magic: The Gathering..." deck. I know, I know, Ken and Kent only had 8 pages to play around with. It's still a bad sign when you expect archetypes to substitute for characters who have actual personalities: Hershey is a total cipher, The Enchantress seems like an off-the-rack ice maiden, and Sir Connery is just a generic Good Guy whose lines could have been scripted for Dudley Do-Right! The story arc isn't over and already I'm getting tired of it. I finished the story with a feeling of: "Let's find the danged sword and move on to new business!" And that's no way to hold readers. Sonic-Grams: Fred plugs the Dark Legion again and pumps #46 in EXTREMELY heavy-duty prose. All this talk about "heated confrontations concerning each other's loyalties" makes it sound like a drama scripted by Edward Albee or Tennessee Williams. I only hope they don't screw around with the Wolf Pack too badly. Jared Matte raves about #39 ("Rage Against The Machine"), and Justin Barrett sticks up for Knuckles and "Mecha Madness". Long-time Netster Ruby the Echidna gets a word in on "Notes From The Net." As the days dwindle down to a precious few.... Sonic Quest Mini-Series, issues #1 - #3 Spaz ghost cover for #1. I FINALLY caught on that the figure in green is supposed to be King Acorn. Sonic Quest #1: "Ordering: One Death Egg scrambled! And may the Force be with us!" Story: Mike Gallagher; Art: Manny Galan Did I miss something in the three months I've been waiting to see this issue? I've never heard the term "renegade" applied to Geoffrey St. John before. "Useless bit player" is more applicable, especially considering his part in "The Dream Zone" (#43). Anyway, the aforementioned renegade/UBP gets a rude reception from the brown-eyed blue blur because Geoff was trying to sneak into Knothole before Princess Sally could show up with his visitor's pass. Inside one of the huts King Acorn is in a bad state since his rescue from the Zone/Void/Whatever. There follows a one-page recap of quite a few story lines, some of them best forgotten even by Ken Penders' admission, from "The Fall of Robotropolis", through "Rage Against The Machine/Mecha Madness/Court Martial" and ending with "And One Shall Save Him". And as Freddy himself admitted, THIS story won't have an impact on anything to come. So why are we here? Who knows? Let's just get this over with. Geoffrey goes and stands at the front door. THAT'S HIS ENTIRE CONTRIBUTION TO THE WHOLE DANG MINISERIES! He does less here than he did in "The Dream Zone". He doesn't even appear in the reaction shot at the end of SonicQuest #3 when the Death Egg is destroyed -- like I'm spoiling it for anyone when I tell you THAT! And a little fox shall lead them: Tails is apparently the only one in Knothole with enough of a grasp of the obvious to note the resemblance between the King's crystalline state and the Chaos Emeralds. This is such a revelation that the news momentarily straightens out Bunnie's perpetually lopped ear. Sonic tries exposing the King to that Billionth Ring he got in "Ring of Truth" (#35) with less than desirable results. Still, Rotor seems to think that more of the same should help -- only this time, check the freshness date. Can we pause here and talk about Manny Galan's artwork? Maybe we'd better not, in case there are any small children around. Page 8 is a mess! The top panel looks like the inside of a funhouse: the perspective is shot, the characters are off- model, and the full-figure Sally at the bottom of the page looks like it was inked by someone other than the person who inked the Sally at the top of the page. After yet more plot synopses from previous stories, the Freedom Fighters get their orders: Bunnie and Antoine go on vacation and don't reappear in the story, Sally and Rotor stay behind for an odd interlude in SQ#2, and that leaves Sonic and Tails to carry the story. As for the villain of this melodrama, despite a Patrick Stewart quotation, the only thing Robotnik has in common with Jean-Luc Picard is the same hairline. He leaves an off-model Snively behind while he goes off to take care of business. For his part, Snively immediately starts slacking off -- apparently taking his lead from Geoffrey St. John. Sonic and Tails arrive at the ring grotto featured in the Super Sonic v. Hyper Knuckles special, the one that was supposedly imploded when Sonic and Knuckles did a serious head butt. Only now the aforementioned grotto is covered by a metal dome. For no logical reason, Sonic thinks that Carl Condor who lives in the mountains to the west may know something about this development. He leaves Tails and runs off to check in with Carl. The last time we were here, we were treated to the sight of Princess Sally on all fours in what for animals can only be described as a sexually receptive position (though seen from a "safe" angle) delivering that deathless line to Sonic and Knuckles: "Don't be shy, boys! Take a look down here!" So now Tails can only watch in horror as the mound-like dome spreads apart and a giant tube drops down from the sky and inserts itself suggestively into the grotto. The entire sequence has all the subtlety and Freudian symbolism of a train entering a tunnel. Too bad Sonic and Sally will never marry: this grotto would be the perfect place for them to spend their honeymoon. OK, let's move on before this gets any nastier. Tails watches as the tube sucks up rings from the grotto. He tries to make a break for it, but due to some premature withdrawal RDB note: what was that about not getting nastier? by the tube he gets sucked up along with some of the surrounding landscape. Sonic, meanwhile, finds nothing but nothing in the western landscape. As for Carl, he shows up as a roboticized condorbot. Carl apparently makes short work of Sonic and begins bearing him aloft to the Death Egg, which looks like an egg- shaped Death Star with two parabolic dishes (a double yolker?). Robotnik, however, is cheesed off that the tube sucked up so much of the Mobian landscape that the ship is carrying too much weight. He punches out the SWATbot responsible and sends the bot down the garbage chute (remember that bot -- he'll figure in the plot later). Robotnik then heads for the control room, with the standard equipment of fuzzy dice and 8-ball stick shift. I'm sure that if Galan could have figured out a way to include a bare foot accelerator pedal and Yosemite Sam "Back Off!" mud flaps he would have. And the camera pulls away to reveal the Death Egg in all its cliched glory. Oh, I'm so scared. Back up one page for the Fan Art section. Nice drawing by Tara Holcraft of Princess Sally in a full-length gown. I wonder how Tara is at drawing shrouds? Letter Quest: So how come there AREN'T any letters? There ARE, however, covers for SonicQuest #2 and #3, Sonic Live (they say " #1" but considering the reception it got I think it's safe to say "#only"), and Sonics #43 and 44. Freddy warns us to "expect the unexpected". Fred, you don't know the half of it! Find Your Name: Holly-Beth "Vixie" Kraft -- that the same "Vixie" who's on the Sonic list? --------------------------------------------------------------------------- >From: SMTP%"VixieL@aol.com" 19-FEB-1997 19:15:16.16 >Message-ID: <970219191405_684637759@emout02.mail.aol.com> >To: drazen@andrews.edu, Sonic-MailingList@inet.uni-c.dk >cc: bauerle@engr.erie.ge.com Yer darn tootin mister!! ;) Vixie~ --------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Note: Before proceeding with the plot synopsis, we will now turn this review over to two representatives of the Canadian printing industry]: "Good day, I'm Bob McKenzie. This is my brother, Doug." "How's it goin', eh?" "And we're here to talk aboot what happened when the Death Egg Saga #2 got printed, eh?" "Yah, what happened dere? How come Sonic's like all purple, eh?" "OK, like, what happened was what's called oversaturation." "That's when you've had too many brews, eh?" "Take off, ya hoser!" "I took a look at page 1 and I thought *I* was oversaturated." "We're not talkin' aboot you, we're talkin' aboot the printing, eh?" "So how come it looks so bad, eh?" "OK, here's the deal. It's kinda like when you've bean screwin' aroond with the tint control on the TV, eh? And you pushed the red too far." "It was dat cheap universal remote ya got. The buttons stick, eh?" "They stick because you keep spilling your Molson's on the remote, eh?" [Sounds of a scuffle] We apologize to any Canadians reading this review for the preceding explanation of why the colors on certain pages of #2 (which was printed in The Great White North) got jazzed. Basically, in the 4-color printing process used to print the comic, the red value was twice what it should have been. Because of a tight schedule, the error wasn't found until too late and it shipped in that condition. So anyway... --------------------------------------------------------------------------- >From: SMTP%"VixieL@aol.com" 19-FEB-1997 19:20:02.76 >Message-ID: <970219191858_-1039217723@emout11.mail.aol.com> >To: drazen@andrews.edu, Sonic-MailingList@inet.uni-c.dk >cc: bauerle@engr.erie.ge.com >Subject: Re: FINALLY!: SonicQuest Review...OH yeah! Really? Hmm. I didn't notice. I'm colorblind to some colors. It's very rare that girlzez is colorblind. Less than 1% of women suffer from what I do! it can happen to YOU!!!!!!! hahahahahahahahahahahahahahah!!!!!!!!!!!! Vixie~ --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sonic Quest #2. "Ordering! One poached Death Egg with a plot rehash!" Is it me, or has Manny Galan's artwork improved dramatically since the first installment? Must be taking Spaziante lessons. Robotnik, unaware that Snively has been busy living off the expense account instead of rebuilding "my beloved megaopolis" [the word is "megalopolis", gang, but what's one more mistake in this issue?], checks in to report that having used the power rings to build the Death Egg's defenses, he needs a Chaos Emerald to adequately power the contraption. He also needs to lose some dead weight in order to gain proper altitude; instead of switching to lo-cal soda, he decides to dump the debris from the grotto that got sucked up. However, part of that debris is tawny-colored and has two tails. Tails climbs into the disabled SWATbot that Robotnik punched out in the previous issue to work it from the inside, dumps the debris (keep an eye on that stuff -- it'll be important to the plot) and reports to Robotnik. As for Sonic, the off-blue blur is still being borne aloft by the Condorbot, which turns out to be as talkative as a parrot. Thanks to some exposition between Botnik and the bot, Sonic gets caught up on the plot and the hedgehog stops playing possum. He tries fighting the Condorbot but is clearly at a disadvantage until the purged debris drops on top of the bot from above (Told ya to watch for that stuff). Using a maneuver I still haven't gotten the hang of (I'll admit it -- I've never gotten to the end of Stage Two of the Jungle Sequence of Sonic 1 for Game Gear), RDB note: nor read many Flash comics? :^) Sonic manages to get himself inside the Egg. Unfortunately, his communicator can't pull in anything from inside there; I've owned radios like that myself. Strange Interlude: we cut to Knothole when Sally learns from Nicole that the King's condition is unknown and worsening. Rotor informs Sally that Sonic and Tails haven't reported back, and Sally lets the stress get to her by crying on Rotor's shoulder. Hang on a minute, I want to check something...Yep, it still says "Mike Gallagher" wrote this story, though this single page is much stronger than his usual work (mercifully). I think he's getting the hang of this! And Galen's drawings of Sally are pretty darned amazing. Spaziante's influence REALLY shows. Nice tail! She's also got a great bootie. From the sublime to the ridiculously obese: Tails, still wearing his SWATbot costume, realizes that Robotnik is headed toward the Floating Island. So does Knuckles, as the Death Egg does a Kilroy over the clouds on the approach. Knux, however, gets zapped as he approaches the ship, but the Chaotix are waiting for him down below. Robotnik then launches two large "Burrobots" which look a lot like giant versions of Grounder from the syndicated TV series. The two bots clank off in search of the Chaos Emeralds, but Archimedes has already figured that out. So Knux and the crew go after the bots in what WOULD have been an impressive two-page spread if only they'd gotten the colors right. Once outside of the burning building.... Sorry, that was how an infamous chapter of a Nancy Drew mystery began. She went from trapped inside the building at the end of the previous chapter to outside at the beginning of the next with NO account of how she got there. Gallagher sort of follows in the same footsteps by having Sonic declare that he's worked his way "up the levels" to the control room. Page limitations, I suppose. But it's compensated by a VERY complex plot situation at the bottom of page 18: Robotnik getting ready to attack the Floating Island with Tails/SWATbot inching out of the control room not noticing Sonic who unaware that the SWATbot is his little bro in disguise prepares to trash to SWATbot! Whew! That's a cliffhanger ending right there! But on we go as the Death Egg tries pushing the Floating Island into the sea, attempting to overcome the "prodigous" [Hey, Fred, you need a proofreader?] power of the Chaos Emerald. Robotnik pushes all systems to 150% and turns the amplifiers up to 11. He succeeds in tilting the island so that Knuckles slides off, glides away and gets a look at the Floating Island being turned into landfill. Not if HE can help it! Letter-Quest: a couple hints about #3, which is coming right up. Also plugs for "Sonic Live!" and #43. "Find Your Name" and Fan Art pages are oversaturated but it only partly ruins some fine art this time around, especially a very manga-esque rendering of Sally auditioning for a new gig in anticipation of her getting killed off here. Sonic Quest #3:"Ordering: Death Egg Over Easy and not a moment too soon! And easy on the rehash!" Look out, old Manny is back. And I mean the OLD Manny who couldn't draw worth beans. For your consideration, please look at pages 2 and 3. Now tell me with a straight face that Sonic doesn't have the EXACT SAME FACIAL EXPRESSION IN ALL NINE TIMES HE'S USED! Sure, there are subtle variations: Sonic with his mouth closed, Sonic with his eyes opened wider. But it's the same face! This is stupid! NOBODY can lose it THIS fast, not after the superior artwork seen in #2 (notwithstanding the color snafu). And Manny's subsequent lame artwork for "The Dream Zone" (#43) only confirms my suspicions. Did the change in inkers from SQ#2 (Jim Amash and Jay Oliveras) to SQ#3 (Harvo and Jay Oliveras) make THAT much of a difference? I had to wonder whether, under deadline pressures, Spaziante didn't "lend a hand" and do some of the pencilling while letting Galen take the credit. That's the only other explanation I can come up with. But the gang at Archie would NEVER do anything so unethical, would they? ("Excuse me, Freddy, Newt Gingrich is calling you from his cell phone on line two."). OK, so much for the artwork, let's get to the plot. Sonic gets to rough up the SWATbot a bit before realizing that Tails is inside. As Sonic heads for Robotnik, we realize why he just sat there while Sonic and Tails had their exposition: he's sealed off by plexiglass. Enclosing Sonic, he begins pumping poison gas into Sonic's chamber. The suspense mounts as we look at a full- page ad for adulterated yogurt on the facing page. RDB note: you know what the problem with yogurt is? How do you know when it goes bad? :^) Tails, however, busts through a wall using the SWATbot bod and then opens fire with the bot's blasters. He not only manages to free Sonic but he also cuts out the downward thrusters. Newton's third law kicks in as Robotnik makes yet another escape. On the Floating Island, there's quite a bit of grandiose posing and dialogue from Knuckles who admits (in passing) that he "caught a break". So having not accomplished anything in this saga except to help bust up the Burrobots and despite his "equal billing" on the cover of #3 with Sonic, his part is over and aside from a lousy reaction shot at the end he gets to collect his paycheck. Gotta do something about these "pay or play" contracts. OK, here's where I have to defer to those who know the games better than I do. Robotnik goes to his backup, about whom I don't know anything: Silver Sonic. Looks impressive; fights stupid. Knocks Sonic into a wall, giving Sonic the opportunity to use a couple live wires to short him out. Hmmm, 3 pages -- about the length of some of Mike Tyson's recent bouts. OK, so Buttnik goes to the backup's backup: some body armor called the "Eggs-O-Skeleton". Looks like the old Gallagher is back in town as well. This ploy doesn't hold up either since Sonic has taken a cue from Tails and climbed into the Silver Sonic to "extend himself" for Robotnik's benefit. They duke it out for a few pages and I can't help but think of Siguorney Weaver operating that cargo hauler in "Aliens II" and giving the critter a taste of kung fu. They battle their way into the room where Tails waits to deliver the deathless line: "I rigged the Death Egg to explode in twenty minutes, but your battle with Robotnik has damaged so many internal systems, it could ignite at any moment." And all without using the Owner's Manual (see "How To Rig The Death Egg To Explode In Twenty Minutes", page 817). He later speaks of "the antimatter matrix reach[ing] the nucleonic dispersion chamber"; hey Poindexter, you swallow a dictionary for breakfast? It's understandable as technobabble goes, but not too plausible coming from Tails. On their way out, our heroes just happen to pass a "magic ring junction box" -- all together now: "GEE, WHAT ARE THE ODDS?" They make a jump for it, Sonic jettisons the Silver suit and the Death Egg goes the way of the Death Star(s). Not that it does any good: the rings fail to cure the King and Robotnik escapes to fight another day, after auditing Snively's books. What can you say about this story with a straight face? The artwork was some of the most inconsistent around. It started bad, got better, then went to bad again. And the story was a muddle. Gallagher threw in too many characters who ended up doing nothing, and some of what the others ended up doing just wasn't up to par. Sonic's whole "worked his way up the levels" angle in #2 was hack writing at its worst. At least Gallagher got his act together to a surprising degree for the Sonic Blast special. But perhaps the most objectionable aspect was the one Freddy was up-front about: that this story accomplished about as much as Geoffrey did as a glorified doorman. OK, Robotnik gets defeated again; like nobody could have guessed that THAT was going to happen! That particular punch was telegraphed by the MISuse of the Death Egg device. Yes, "misuse". At least in the Star Wars film, they used the Death Star to destroy Alderaan and give the viewer an idea of what the gang was up against. Such a waste of paper and time, all capped off by the oversaturation of #2. In some ways, it's kind of symbolic...though not NEARLY as symbolic as the grotto sequence in #1! Letter-Quest: Thanks to all those who did/didn't deserve it. Plug for #44 and the return of Evil Sonic with an Evil Knuckles as well in what's beginning to shape up to be the recurring Bizarro World for this series. And at the end of December, "Sonic Blast #1: It's the official comic adaptation of [i.e., it's the Glorified Print Advertisement for] the game with the very same name." Also covers for #45 (Mobie returns) and #46 (Sonic and Geoffrey arm-wrestling or something). The "Find Your Name" page includes readers from Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Tasmania (technically part of Australia) and Singapore. That means that Sally's demise will be an international tragedy. The fan art page features some manga-inspired humor with Bunnie having egg problems of her own as an Easter bunny, along with a nice landscape of Knothole. I've already commented upon the drawing of Sally playing the field before Ken tells her to hit the road. From a great height. RDB note: speaking of which, would somebody download the cover for #47 from AOL and e-mail it to me or put it on a web site as Ken said they could (with the appropriate copyright disclaimer) in his interview? Thanks! #46 [May 1997] Spaz/Harvo cover: EXTREME CLOSE-UP!! My, what big egos...er, teeth you have. All the better to chew the scenery with. "Countdown to Armageddon" Story: Ken Penders and Kent Taylor; Art: Nelson Ortega Based on the spoilers that have already been posted about this story, I formed the preliminary conclusion that the opening sequence (how Uncle Chuck roboticized Sonic's father) was a good premise wasted on the wrong story. Now that I've seen the sequence for myself, I've revised my opinion: this is a GREAT premise wasted on the wrong story! Ortega's artwork is surprisingly strong, and the pacing is a jolt. As to the identity of the hedgehog being roboticized, only a clueless newbie would miss the following hints: a) The look. And no, I DON'T believe all hedgehogs look alike. b) The talk. Uncle Chuck's use of the possessive pronoun "MY brother" removes all doubt as to who's in that chamber there. c) Relativity. Charles is Sonic's uncle. That means that Sonic is the son either of Charles's sister or brother. Since this is the only mention ever of a sibling for Charles, we have to assume that the metal Sonic in question is indeed Sonic's father. So, having established that, identify the following clueless newbies: "Where's the popcorn?" "That is way past cool...how ya doing it?" "Do you have a dish antennae [sic] with a hundred movie stations?" "This would be a perfect time for one of my special military retreats." Yes, we're talking about the Knothole Freedom Fighters: Tails, Sonic, Dulcy, and the soon-to-be late Princess Sally. That last one really galls me. I've done enough writing for Sally in my fanfic to have a feel for her character, and she's not that clueless! One of the first things out of her mouth should have been something to the effect of "I didn't know you had a brother, Uncle Chuck." RDB note: uh, then why would Sonic have called him "Uncle Chuck"? Everybody else doesn't even comment on the situation! The whole angle drops straight down the same memory hole that's swallowed so many bad plots and angles before. Ken Penders, speaking in his own defense on this point, has stated that the last time he tried introducing a similar angle in the Sally miniseries concerning Sally's mother, he was promptly slapped down by Sega, probably by some business school grad whose only experience with creative writing involves submitting expense account reports. Since then Ken's admitted to being more circumspect in introducing controversial plot angles. All well and good, but better that the issue should never have been raised at all than the Knothole characters end up behaving like actors in a movie with an Idiot Plot. For those of you unfamiliar with the term, film critic Roger Ebert coined the phrase "Idiot Plot" to denote any motion picture where the action can only proceed according to the story line if all the actors are complete idiots. Slasher films are prime examples of Idiot Plot movies. Everybody KNOWS about the serial killer lurking in the woods around Camp Whatchamacallit, but there's always a group of idiot teenagers who have to follow the Idiot Plot outline and head on up to the camp because it's the perfect make-out spot. Why? Because if they DIDN'T act like idiots -- if it occurred to them that looking for another venue or maybe going bowling would be a better idea -- the movie would be over. So a fantastic angle turns into a waste of space because the right story isn't going to be told. We now rejoin the cast of "Clueless in the Great Forest." Sally's idea of a retreat is not to run away; rather, it's more like a camp-out than a bug-out. But instead of singing a couple choruses of the Mobian equivalent of "Kumbaya", we're treated to more self-criticism from Uncle Chuck. He continues to avoid the question he himself raised in the beginning, instead giving a brief resume of his official duties in an effort by Ken and Kent to meld the DiC Canon with the Archie Received Version (not entirely successfully; Dic has never even HINTED that Uncle Chuck was ever a short-order cook. That was the version quoted in the original 4-issue series). And while he was in the process of confessing his sins, why didn't Uncle Chuck mention what it was like to be a single parent to Sonic? Ken and Kent manage to avoid that angle entirely, but how many of you reading this would like to know THAT story? Show of hands, please. I thought so. Enter mystery guest and sign in please: yes, after way too long, one of the few guest characters of the cartoon series to really make an impression finally puts in an appearance in the comic: it's Lupee, accompanied by several members of the Wolf Pack. (Note: I prefer spelling it "Lupee" until I can figure out a way to insert a grave diacritical mark above the "e"). RDB note: there's probably some high-ASCII character that does it, but I wouldn't use it anyway... How about Lupe'? After a white wolf named Drago (impressive but the name screws up the Native American motif of the Wolf Pack entirely) mentions a new kind of bot under development, he begins casting aspersions on Uncle Chuck by accusing him of being a spy for Robotnik. Sonic tries to defend his kin but the accusation is second[ed] by yet another mystery guest: Geoffrey St. John. Since his debut in "Deadliest of the Species" when he was mysteriously heroic and suave, he seems to have undergone a personality transplant. Unfortunately, the donor must have been a total jerk. His first act is to start sucking on Sally's face...well, it doesn't look like a kiss to me, Nelson. His gratuitous mention of the competitor's product ("This isn't a GAME, BOY!) earns him a well-deserved punch in the mouth from Sonic. He retaliates by firing some kind of bolo that binds Sonic to a tree. Before he can reprise his attempt in "And One Shall Save Him" to put a crossbow bolt through Sonic's head, we pause for the Fan Art and Find Your Name pages. Matt Burt's drawing of Sonic and Tails wearing baggy clothes is interesting, especially when you consider that as furries Sonic and Tails are usually buck nekkid anyway. OK, fans, close all the doors because logic is gonna fly out the windows. Sonic is spared, not by a boot to Geoff's head from Sally (as in "Mecha Madness" when she decked Knuckles) but by a left hook from...Antoine!? Yes, everyone's favorite pain in the butt now gets a chance to demonstrate his loyalty and to launch into an exposition of his own. According to this abridged version (which itself demanded the richer detail and steadier pacing of a solo story, something along the line of "Fathers and Sons") Antoine was a mere cadet in training when Robotnik took over and the REAL founder of the underground -- Antoine's father -- went to the roboticizer, no doubt singing the Mobian equivalent of the "Marseilles". Antoine and Geoffrey mix it up some more, and Sally breaks it up so Antoine can supply additional exposition. I know that Ken has said that he writes stories as if the comic were attracting new readers all the time, but this much exposition is getting ridiculous. In "Knuckles' Quest #3", f'rinstance, we were treated to an eight-page story with two pages of exposition: that's a staggering 25%! I guess it's better than repeated editorial boxes courtesy of Justin or Freddy or whatever name he goes by. So anyway, Bunnie takes over the exposition (keep in mind that NONE of this has ever so much as been hinted at in either the comics or the SatAM series, and we just have to take Ken and Kent's word for it, so there!) and adds the angle that Antoine is, in addition to being a "dashing hero", a victim of unrequited love for Sally. Yeah, him and a whole lotta drooling fanboys! Bunnie promptly rectifies this situation by going up to Antoine and declaring her own feelings for him, complete with a heart iris. So it looks like Bunnie and Antoine could be an item! Who could have predicted this turn of events? Who could have seen it coming? Who...who am I kidding!? This angle has been a staple of Robert Brown and Francis Tolbert's fanfic from the very beginning. Made it easier for ME to believe it! Meanwhile, back at the campfire, things are heating up within the Wolf Pack as Lupee wonders out loud why Drago has been absenting himself so frequently lately. So now we've got Lupee suspicious of Drago, Drago suspicious of Sir Charles, Geoffrey suspicious of Sir Charles and Sonic, and Antoine suspicious of Geoffrey. Sally finally gives the lot of them a time-out, and the story ends with a rather weak segue to "A Goat, A Raven, and a Swan Song!" (Knuckles' Quest 4) Story: Ken and Kent; Art: Manny Galan (who gets to put a grave above the second "a" in his last name! Yeah, yeah, I've been pronouncing it "GALE-un" all along myself.) After some MORE exposition, and bumping into an out-of-place humanoid skeleton (probably the remains of some poor soul who's STILL waiting to receive SonicQuest by mail!), Knuckles goes spelunking until he runs across two "weird dudes" -- yeah, like everybody else he's run into to date has been normal! After identifying them as Mathias Poe (raven) and Damocles the Elder (goat), Knuckles makes a rather undignified entrance. In response, Knuckles is attacked by something conjured up by Mathias: quoth the raven, "a golem made of metal." It's basically a really tough bot and bears no resemblance at all to the legendary creature conjured up by Rabbi Judah Lowi of Prague to protect the city's Jews from Christian mobs incited by allegations of blood libel. Trust me, I know from the legend of the Golem of Prague. Anyway, Archimedes (who apparently had been goofing off in Knuckles' backpack the whole time his buddy was slaving away for the Enchantress in Quest #3) tells Knux that a golem needs "a constant supply of magic life" -- in the case of the Golem of Prague it was a slip of paper on which was written the one name of God which people weren't supposed to pronounce, and since it's basically a word composed of four Hebrew vowels RDB note: I thought it was _consonants_: YHWH??? pronouncing it is quite a trick anyway! Archimedes uses his fire-breathing shtick to distract Mathias (quoth the raven, "ARRKK!"), cutting the channel to the golem. This sets up not only the golem's destruction, but a stupidly predictable Arnold Schwarzenegger joke. As for Damocles, he begins to melt thanks to a handy chemical spill. But before a HazMat Team can arrive on the scene, the figure of Damocles either turns into or else melts to reveal (it isn't spelled out all that clearly) the long-sought- after sword. Remember the sword? Knuckles bears it aloft, commands it to take him to the Hall of Limbo (remember the Hall of Limbo?) and the Crown of Acorns (remember the Crown?). And... ...nothing happens. A lesser character might have asked Mathias where he's put the Owner's Manual; at the very least, he'd have started looking for the URL for the "Use and Maintenance of Your Magic Sword" page on the World Wide Web. Instead, Knuckles demonstrates his recently- acquired intelligence by NOT beating the answer out of Mathias. Forgetting about the bird altogether, he decides that exactly how the Royal Toad Sticker works is now Someone Else's Problem and figures he'll let Sally worry about it. That's the kind of ruthless corporate logic that would impress Dogbert! Nelson Ortega's artwork is uneven but serviceable; I can't remember the last time Sonic's head looked that big. The roboticizing of Sonic's father was the most impressive sequence while his rendering of Geoffrey varied. And Manny Galan has FINALLY found his calling! After horrible renderings of the Knothole crew, his drawings of Knuckles and Archimedes are as close to Art Mawhinney's excellent work in "Rites of Passage" as you can get. The stories, which seem to be on the brink of converging in #47, were well-paced (aside from some jumpiness in "Countdown" what with all the expositions). "Countdown" even managed to overcome the problem of Ken and Kent trying to shoehorn too much material into too few pages (obviously for the sake of setting up the "Endgame" arc). It was a good issue with many laudable points. So why, when it was all over, was I left feeling so depressed? One of the charms of the Sonic series (for me at any rate) was the fact that these kids -- remember, they're the Mobian equivalent of teenagers -- weren't members of some macho elite fighting force. This was never "Red Dawn" with fur -- that feeling was never there. Instead, the Knothole crew was a surrogate family. It was a scenario which advertised itself with every use of a familiar name: Aunt Sally, Uncle Chuck, "little bro". It isn't just Sally that's going to die in the next issue; according to therapists like John Bradshaw or Claudia Black who have studied family dynamics, when one member of a family is gone or is an addict the entire family is thrown off. Ken and Kent seem to understand this but appear to want to aggravate the process. It was no fun watching the charges and countercharges of espionage and treason flying around because instead of building up tensions and creating false leads in the name of story structure, we get treated to the sight of watching the Knothole "family" unravel like a cheap sweater. Who needs THAT? Ken has stated that the "new age" of Sonic comics begins with this issue. Given the way I feel, it's not a prospect I welcome. He seems to know where he wants to go and doesn't mind trashing the things that made the Sonic story worthwhile (to at least some of his readers) in the first place. If reviewing these stories continues along this rather unsatisfying path, I may simply let my subscription lapse when it runs out and go back to scanning issues on the newsstand, taking notes, and writing up short plot summaries. This job is losing its emotional payoff. Some new age! RDB note: to beat Ken to the punch: at least hang in till past #50... Sonic-Grams: I'm not even going to bother with Freddy's hype of #47. And I don't know from "Knuckles: The Dark Legion" because I haven't ordered it from Archie yet -- it sure isn't on sale anywhere around here. Let's see what's on TV: Click. "The Archie Wrestling Federation: the revolutionary force in preadolescent humor as enacted by adolescent cartoon characters! "Knuckles! Guardian of the Floating Island! Fresh from his quest for the Sword of the Acorn Kings! "Mammoth Mogul! Judged the Worst New Character of 1996! In his first appearance in the AWF, he faced the combined might of the Chaotix tag team! Despite his claims of possessing "limitless power" he left the ring after the first lock-up and lost the match by a controversial countout! Now he wants that sword! Don't ask me what a being with "limitless power" needs a magic sword for, he just does! He's tanned! He's rested! He's ready! Well, he's rested anyway! "Sonic the Hedgehog! Freedom Fighter! Corporate shill! Eligible bachelor! We don't know exactly WHAT he's got to do with this scenario but we're tossing him into the stewpot as well! "Princess Sally! Beloved cartoon character! Slated for death! What's she doing here? In fact, why is the dummy cover nothing but a paste-up of old Sonic comic artwork? Who knows! Who cares! Because it's ONLY AVAILABLE ON PAY-PER- VIEW!! (Until some wise guy posts the spoilers on the Net!) "SONIC VS. KNUCKLES: BATTLE ROYAL!!! Lllllllllllllllllllllet's get ready to rumbllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll..." Click. Forget it. Yeah, there are letters and a Note from the Net, but I'm too bummed to deal with them. Sorry, people. Way to go, Ron. RDB note: is that praise or blame? :^) (The latter for giving Ken the second season material to adapt, for better or worse...) #47 [June 1997] "Taking The Fall" "Brought to you with pride by: Ken Penders (script); Art Mawhinney (art)". Talk about "In your face!" Placing the title page and the credits on the LAST page of this installment may be only one of a number of tricks being perpetrated on the reader. I'm going to try ignoring all but the most glaring ones; if I wanted to do something cerebral I'd play chess! Splash page: decent but again with the tricky wording by Ken at the end, juxtaposing "fallen" with "survive" as if to imply "falling=not surviving." Not even the first real page and already I get the feeling somebody's screwing with my head! OK, Sonic and Sally manage to scale Robotnik's HQ while under surveillance from the Wolf Pack. Lupe' (VERY well drawn by Mawhinney, as is just about everyone he's ever drawn...OK, except Mobie!) does the verbal equivalent of hitting Drago on the nose with a rolled-up newspaper for suggesting that the Pack should be soloing this mission. Drago sends a signal to the Knothole crew which is aided by...Dr. Quack? He himself wonders why he was drafted: "I'm a doctor, not a commando!" He may not have studied medicine under Dr. McCoy but they must have had the same acting coach. Cue the Princess's flashback, this time in shades of blue rather than sepia. After a quick one-panel reminder of the campout in #46 with NO elaboration at all as to the flinging of charges and countercharges, and an editorial box by J. Freddy which is no help at all, we jump to a scene which MAYBE will be covered in "Battle Royal." Or maybe not; J. Fred doesn't even contribute a box for this sequence, and it needs one badly. A definitely underutilized Rosie (a rather welcome presence, actually) summons Sally into another room where... OK, this is where I had some SERIOUS problems with the story. If it was just a matter of continuity and the lag in releasing "Battle Royal", fine. But the next two pages of business between Sally and the King -- who is suddenly restored to normal -- are wrong from beginning to end. Sally observes that nobody had informed her of her father's recovery; you ain't alone, Sal! So what happens during this major moment when I'd expect at least a couple panels of father-daughter bonding in a tearful reunion, much as was done in both "Blast To The Past", Part 1 and "The Void"? The King launches into this weird tirade about how "we may have a traitor in our midst...Sonic the Hedgehog!", complete with banging on tables. Yes, he's talking about the same Sonic whom he talked with in the Zone/Void/Whatever during "The Dream Zone" , the same Sonic who pulled the King's royal caboose out of said Zone in "And One Shall Save Him," the same Sonic who did the exact same thing in "The Void," the same Sonic who's been knocking himself out trying to collect Chaos Emeralds, power rings, magic rings, piston rings, WHATEVER so Sally won't have a father who'd end up looking like the daily special at a New Age crystal shop... you get the idea. The alleged King's performance leaves Sally in tears as she runs from the room. She, along with those readers who have been hanging in there all along, know better. The whole sequence can be summed up by a line from Buddy Love in the original Jerry Lewis "Nutty Professor": "Mood is wrong, mood is WRONG!" Let's get back to the mission, shall we? For some reason, Sonic starts heading down an air vent while Sally lowers herself down the building on a rope. Even THIS looks too weird; you'd think that Mobians would have figured out how to rappel. Then again, since these ARE furries and rappelling works better when you're wearing pants, maybe not. Anyway, Sal is moving down the building in plain sight of Robotnik, who pays her the gratuitous(?) compliment of calling her "the apple of her father's eye", an eye which I'd increasingly like to blacken at this point. So Robotnik deploys several...I guess you'd call them cannons of some sort...which then begin shooting wildly, missing both Sally and her ropes despite the fact that they're firing from what can only be point-blank range. Antoine displays his new-found executive skills by observing: "She is in grave danger!", which is not only painfully obvious but sounds like another red herring. Or am I getting paranoid? Rotor chooses this moment to "field test" that BFG he showed off at the beginning of "Black and Blue and Red All Over" (Sonic #44), mindless of the possibility that the [shrapnel] from the exploding cannons just might not be the best thing for Sally's health, either. Not to mention what would happen if his aim was off and Sally took a direct hit. OK, time for things to go very sour very fast. The Knothole group notices Sonic...or a reasonable facsimile...on the balcony where Sally had secured the rope. They then see this figure cut the rope and it takes all five panels on page 9 for Sally, her terminal velocity having been slowed by an awning, to hit the ground. This may have been as much to avoid offending the delicate sensibilities of the Sega watchdogs as to prolong Sally's agony. Bunnie begins to step in to evac Sally, which gives Robotnik another opportunity to display poor marksmanship until the Wolf Pack start laying down fire themselves. Bunnie reaches Sally first, so now is a good time to CUT AWAY from this development to... Robotnik's control room, where Sonic arrives and confronts the big guy. Snively refers to Sonic as "reality challenged", which describes someone who thinks sales of Sonic Comics will continue rising no matter what. While Sonic is kept preoccupied avoiding blaster fire, Robotnik and Snively make a break for it. Sonic, meanwhile, manages to use the old mirror trick to take the lasers out of commission, then asks himself the question the readers were asking themselves two pages back: What about Sally? As for Robotnik, he figures now is as good a time as any to do the old Destroy-The-Headquarters bit to make sure Sonic is toast. Speaking of toast, Ken perpetrates an obscure, unforgivable pun on page 14. Bunnie is carrying Sally in her arms, saying: "We're SHOAH not leaving without her!"(emphasis mine). This isn't just another attempt as a Southern accent. It so happens that "shoah" is the Hebrew word for a sacrificial offering, and Jews observe "Yom ha Shoah" in memory of those who died during the Holocaust... Excuse me...I'm losing it.... I lost it. I swear to God, between seeing the picture of Sally stretched out in the center panel of page 14 and typing the word "Holocaust" I lost it. If Ken Penders didn't know the significance of the word "shoah" it was a powerful coincidence. If he DID know, it was just plain sick. I'm sorry, I can't go on with this review. I scanned the issue, I know generally what's coming, you probably do as well but I'm not going any further. Not now. Maybe I'll finish summarizing #47 in conjunction with #48. Accent on "maybe." RDB note: I hope your office door is soundproof... :^( A couple things that helped me: keep reminding yourself that "it's only a comic book", and get a good night's sleep... OK. Ken insists that the use of the word "shoah" meant nothing cosmic; it was something he borrowed from a Stan Lee G.I. {character} who was supposed to be a Southerner. I can accept that. I just did some heavy-duty word association that sent me into an emotional tailspin. So I take a few deep breaths and make a few notes about the back half of #47 (skipping over plot points, features, etc).: SHE'S DEAD, JIM: Glad that the actual moment was handled in silence. I'm a great believer in having the characters just shut up and let the artwork carry the narrative forward. Could've been a tad stronger but the Rosie-Tails pose is perfect. Down side: the body is never shown. This adds a certain ambiguity to the storyline. Accident? I don't think so. NO JUICING ALLOWED: It was, after all, a clean death. No blood, not even a trickle. Again, credit Sega with not wanting to corrupt our innocent eyeballs. (BTW, "to juice" is a professional wrestling term meaning "to bleed profusely, usually by cutting yourself across the forehead with a razor blade, as a way of adding excitement to the match". Which explains why some wrestlers have weird-looking foreheads. Just a Fun Fact for when you read Battle Royal). RDB note: now you've done it - now Sonic can't ever use that term again :^) GENDER-BENDER: Hershey makes her appearance. At least I THINK it's a her. At least she's turned out to be a black-and-white DSH (domestic shorthair) and not the full-blown black cat cliche' which the Sorceror in Knuckles' Quest #3 proved to be. Yet Mawhinney didn't exactly go out of his way to assert her femininity: a bracelet, sorta kinda longish eyelashes, and having Drago call her "Babe". She's certainly not as _zaftig_ (Yiddish: "shapely") as Bunnie, and she lacks the extra head fur that Sally had. At the risk of firing the first shot in a flame war that could take years and cost millions of lives, when I first saw the page with Hershey I momentarily (for a few seconds) wondered whether Hershey was a male and, if so, whether that meant Hershey and Drago were both gay. Get real: the Sega watchdogs would never have allowed THAT angle. One word of advice for Hershey: makeover. AND IT'S ONE, TWO, THREE/WHAT'RE WE {FIGHTIN'} FOR?: And I thought the legal proceedings in "Court Martial" (#41) were a joke! No sooner is Sonic back in Knothole than Geoffrey slaps the cuffs on him for the compound charges of treason and murder. We have the Hershey-Drago interlude, then cut to Sonic's sentencing and banishment. For those of us who wondered how the King would handle the death of his only child, I'd say he's taking it well. Too well. He doesn't seem to have shed tear one. Anyone else in that situation would have gone the summary justice route and tried wringing Sonic's neck barehanded. The lack of passion on his part makes the AntiKing option look more plausible. Beyond that, there's a pretty obvious lack of due process in Knothole. I know there were probably page limitations Ken had to deal with, but come on! Sonic's getting railroaded here even worse than in "Court Martial." I suppose you could argue that everyone's so shell-shocked by grief that they're pretty much letting the "King" do as he will, RDB note: and notice also no reaction to the King's recovery - supposedly only Sally and Rosie knew about it just before the mission - I find it hard to believe it was made public shortly thereafter... but is this the kind of "freedom" they've been fighting for all these years? By story's end, there's not that much to choose from between the "King" and Robotnik. Next month: Sonic's impersonation of Harrison Ford (or David Jansen if you're a baby boomer). If what Ken says is true, Sonic turns on the waterworks and mourns his lost love, despite pressure from Sega. I guess if we're going to do any freedom fighting in this little corner of the galaxy, it'll be over the First Amendment. RDB note: another long 4 weeks... On that note, I hope everybody has a Happy Easter, whether it means anything to you personally or not... #48 [July 1997] "Sonic the Fugitive" Story: Ken Penders; Art: Manny Galan Ivo Robotnik here. Well, the fool who usually writes these reviews is off somewhere, probably still maundering RDB note: in which sense? (pulls out dictionary): 1. Obsolete: To grumble; growl. 2. To move languidly or idly [compare meander] 3. To speak indistinctly or disconnectedly; mutter. over Princess Sally's demise or entering some poem or other into that "Cybershrine" he set up in her memory. Allow me to contribute something of my own. I call it "Ode to a Princess". Ahem: Sally was here but now she's gone; Her furry friends must carry on. I knew the Acorn brat quite well And thanks to Archie she's rotting in... "Excuse me, Dr. Robotnik." SNIVELY! You interrupted me just as I was about to climax my declamation! RDB note: HEY! There'll be none of that here! :^) "Terribly sorry, Sir, but you might want to get on with the review before someone detects our presence." I might ALSO want to grind you into powder! Keep THAT in mind, Snively! "Y-yes, Sir!" Now let me see, where was I? Oh, never mind, let's recap that delightful story in #47. Sonic escaped the destruction of my headquarters, as I had anticipated.... "YOU had anticipated? It was I who suggested...." You were saying something, Snively? "Nothing at all, Sir. (You bloated sack of...)" Anyway, he arrives back at Knothole to discover that not only is the love of his life dead, but that he's charged with her deliberate murder! Her attempted murder would have worked just as well for my purposes, but the Princess's demise was icing on the cake. I don't need to rehash everything else about the story so let's get on with the present story, shall we? Let's see: we start with what is appropriately called (in the Princess's case) a "splash page" with just enough words on it to obscure the sight of that troublesome rodent. From there, we watch as he's being taken aboard a plane to what he thinks will be a jail sentence. He should be so lucky. Page 2...just some inconsequential dialogue by that pack of furry adolescents who thought they could possibly do me any harm. "I wouldn't be quite so sure, Sir." What did you mean by that? "Well, Sir, rumors are beginning to circulate on the Net that the Princess may not be dead after all." You've been watching too many episodes of "The X-Files", Snively. They speak of her death three times on pages 1 and 2 ALONE, and they actually use the WORD! That's more than that bit player, Julayla, got in "In The Still Of The Night" (#18). AND there's that art on the aforementioned splash page! Penders can't have it both ways. He's written himself into a corner from which there's no escape without leaving his credibility as a writer in shreds. So I wouldn't pay any attention to the ambiguities. Not yet, anyway. "That's not the worst of it, though. Rumor also has it that you and Sonic are to fight it out in #50 and..." And WHAT!? "And you're supposed to lose, Sir." Lose? "As in, get killed, Sir." What do you think I look like, a ground squirrel? Use that lightbulb-shaped head of yours, dear boy. The Princess is gone, but Robotnik will endure and conquer! "How can you be so sure, Sir?" Logic, for one thing. If indeed the fix is in and that Acorn whelp manages to come back to life, what's to stop the same thing from happening to ME? Her resurrection can only be justified because her death would violate some rule or standard of the comic book industry, a standard which applies just as much to ME as it does to her. Besides, I have something the Princess never had.... "High cholesterol?" No, friends in high places. "In the government?" Yes, but also where it REALLY counts: in the boardroom of Sega! [A two-note musical phrase sounds; Robotnik and Snively genuflect toward Japan]. Remember, I've been through this before. "Yes, I remember! When you were ... uh ... 'inconvenienced' in 'The Three Phases of E.V.E.' (#22), the people at Sega were MOST upset!" I believe Mr. Penders said that they "just about had a cow" until he agreed to bring me back to life in "The Return" in the very next issue. THERE was a two-issue story arc that most people seem to have forgotten! But not me, Snively. I have logic and precedent on my side; all the Princess has on HER side are broken ribs and internal organs that have been turned to jelly by the force of impact! No, Snively, my position is secure for life...which is more than that Acorn adolescent can say! ("Your self-confidence will be your downfall, you rotund...") I HEARD THAT!! Still, I'd better check the contents of my Survival Kit just to be on the safe side. Let me see: a copy of my Archie contract; a copy of my Sega contract; a copy of my DiC contract...hmm, better hang onto that just to be on the safe side...my paid-up AFTRA membership, my...SNIVELY! Where's Johnny Cochran's phone number? "Programmed into your speed dial, Sir." Excellent. And my portfolio of photographs of the executives at... "Oh dear, one of them feel out. Permit me to...GOOD HEAVENS! WHAT'S HE DOING WITH THAT GOAT!?" GIVE ME THAT!!! Do you know what this represents? "Job security?" And don't you forget it! Now, where were we? "Page 3, Sir." Ah, yes. The REAL fun begins on page 4 when my SWATbots bring down the plane. "Without killing the passengers, sir." Yes, unfortunately. It's SO hard to build good help these days. But what did you think of page 5? "Sir?" It went right by you, didn't it? "I don't follow, Sir." Of course not. That's the genius of it: the subtlety with which I destroy the hedgehog inch by inch, thanks to that cat's paw Penders. Look at the words he used: "Not one single joke or wisecrack escapes his lips...for the first time in his life Sonic is devoid of humor..." You know what Sonic is without humor? "No, Sir." He's no longer Sonic! I'm depersonalizing him step by step, gradually destroying his personality. And when I'm finished with him and he has no personality to speak of, nothing even vaguely resembling an emotional life, it's only a small step to simply roboticizing the body because the soul will be gone. "Extremely diabolical, Sir." I thought so. Let's just jump to the bottom of page 9. Another masterstroke, thanks to my connections at Sega and the pressure they put on Archie Comics. Any of those fanfic scribblers on the Net would have had Sonic "feel[ing] the true impact of Sally's passing" by showing the hedgehog weeping and mourning and carrying on. Right? "It would be the thing to do, I would think." So what does the hedgehog do? He passes out and goes to sleep. Her death doesn't even trouble his dreams on page 13; he's dreaming about his dog! It's all yet another step in my plan: leave the little rugrats who buy this rag with the unspoken impression that Sonic in his heart of hearts never really cared for the Princess at all! "Excellent strategy, Sir." Let's see...Oh, let's just skip to page 17 and get to the good part. After some gratuitous demeaning of the so-called "freedom fighters", RDB note: "gratuitous" indeed, after St. John _and_ Drago... the King introduces his perfect candidate for the reinstated position of Warlord... "Do I have to guess?" Any more backtalk from you, Snively, and you'll get...the "Heaven's Gate" treatment. "You mean that suicidal computer cult?" No, Snively, something much worse. Look at the label on this videocassette. "No! Not that! Not the motion picture 'Heaven's Gate' written and directed by Michael Cimino!" And this is a bootleg copy of the director's cut! Five hours and twenty-five minutes of what even the film's producer called "intolerable, unbearable, unwatchable, staggering self- indulgence"! And after I've made you sit through it, you'll have to watch it again. And again! AND AGAIN!! "Stop!! Stop!! That's too horrible, even for YOU! Spare me, Sir! I promise I won't be disloyal to you again!!" That's better. Now, let's just bask at the magnificence of my entrance. I'm able to easily dispatch that low-tech pea shooter they tried to use against me. Exactly how will probably be better explained in "Battle Royal", which is why I insisted that its distribution be held up--no sense giving the game away too soon. Unfortunately, they cut away from me just when I start showing those little throw rugs who's the REAL power of this Brave New World they've been talking about. I could contemplate that sequence for hours. "We may not have that much time, Sir." I thought I told you to get me unlimited usage on AOL! Well, let's just take one last look at my handiwork on page 20. "You're not on page 20." No, but my influence operating through my minions at Sega is! Once again I was able to undercut Mr. Penders' best efforts, and the hedgehog is prevented from demonstrating any recognizable, credible emotion connected with Princess Sally's death. In fact, if you'll look closely, the one with the tear in his eye is that paramilitary polecat, St. John! Honestly, though, he's SUCH an amateur in the art of verbal sparring! If I'D have been there, I could have reduced the hedgehog to psychic mush in three seconds. "How?" Well, I'd have replied to the hedgehog's declaration of love (which Penders had to fight tooth and nail to even get into the script) by asking him: "And did you have the chance to tell her while she was still alive?" "Devastating comeback, Sir!" Remember, Snively: your enemy is dangerous when he loses control, but let him lose HOPE and he's like clay in your hands! "Sir, we really have to post this and get going!" Let me see: one last bald-faced bow to some motion picture, advertisements, letters, hype...nothing worth mentioning, really. Very well, post this and let's be off; I don't want to be late. "Late for what?" The story conference at Archie Comics. Now that Mobius is practically within my grasp, what's to keep me from extending my influence? Those worthless teenagers in Riverdale could also use some attitude adjustment. Besides, Betty and Veronica are more to my tastes than Sally ever was. Today Mobius---tomorrow, Mamaroneck! "Mamaroneck?" Sonic v. Knuckles: Battle Royal #1 no date "Battle Royal" Let's get right to the point: this is a piece of crap. And not just because of the mutant artwork. Everybody except for the Chaotix and Sonic himself is horribly off-model: Dulcy looks like she's auditioning to be a balloon in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, and Tails has one of those too-large baby heads. The artist is in love with weird points of view--page 4 panel 2 and the double-page spread on pages 9 and 10 are prime examples both of weird staging and even weirder composition. And the figures look more cartooney than they did in the cartoons; they're little more than colored-in outlines. Then again, so is the background. Look at pages 13 and 14 -- there's barely any detailing in the trees and the grass, as if the artist didn't have time to bother giving the scenery (or the characters themselves) any kind of weight, any sense of reality. Either that or he just didn't care to work up a sweat. This drek makes Manak look like Michelangelo! As for the story, that can be summed up in two words: "What story?" This was intended to be a continuation of both "Knuckles' Quest" and "Prelude to Apocalypse" in #46, and a lead-in into "Taking The Fall" in #47. But aside from Mammoth Mogul's insinuating himself into the Endgame plot sideways with no hint of his involvement in the story arc up to this point, "Battle Royal" contributes NOTHING to the story arc. Reading the story was in fact a waste of time: all you really had to do was read the splash page (which pretty well telegraphs the climax of the story) and the Epilogue on the last page. The 24 pages inbetween were a waste of paper, a return to the dreary Itchy-and-Scratchy fight plots I'd thought Archie had outgrown. The ONLY character given any kind of attention is Mammoth Mogul, and even then all you need to know about him at this point is that as far as he's concerned he's God. Don't worry about seeing the King suddenly made whole on the last page and thinking you may have missed something: that went unexplained in this story just as it did in "Taking The Fall." It would have been nice to have been offered SOMETHING besides yet one more angle to the Endgame arc that serves to confuse rather than enlighten. It would have been nice to offer the reader some ray of hope. But hey, welcome to the Brave New World! My [a**]! Frankly it's getting to the point where I don't CARE how Endgame plays out. With each new issue, with each new Endgame installment, Sonic the comic is becoming less and less recognizable. The characters and situations that drew me to become a Sonic fan in the first place are being cast aside. One of the messages I was asked to post in the Princess Sally Memorial Cybershrine said something to the effect that the Knothole Freedom Fighters didn't just lose a member of the team when Sally died-- they lost the heart of it. And I feel like that's what Archie is doing: cutting the heart and soul out of the world I'd become a fan of. If their replacements were in any way interesting and compelling maybe I wouldn't mind. But "Battle Royal" left an extremely sour taste in my mouth. It was bad art in the service of pointless writing which did nothing but waste my time and money. I've never cancelled a magazine subscription in my life but the way I feel right now I WILL cancel my Sonic subscription if the conclusion of Endgame is even half this infuriating, and then someone else can post reviews or summaries of the comics to the FAQ File because I will have lost the desire to have anything to do with the comics. RDB note: that would take half the fun out of my list too :^( (not to give you a guilt trip into sticking with something you don't like anymore though) The story was written by Kent Taylor and Ken Penders, Sam Maxwell did the pencil work, Jim Amash was the inker, Karl Bollers was the colorist, Jeff Powell did the lettering, and the management team consisted of J. Freddy Gabrie as editor, Victor Gorelick as managing editor, and Richard Goldwater as editor-in-chief, and each and every one of them should be ashamed of themselves! You want to find out about the other story in the issue, read it yourself; I'm too disgusted to even look at my copy. RDB note: darn; now we won't hear your comments on how Antoine's treatment of Bunnie will affect their budding romance (inside pun intentional :^)) #49 [Aug 1997] OK, last things first. The Sonic-Grams is usually one of the most worthless sections of the comic, made even more so recently by the decision to have some of the other "cast members" answer the letters. The questions tend to be lame and/or the same questions over and over. And the backgrounds they've been using lately don't help matters -- the one in this issue reminds me of a Web page with really bad wallpaper. But tucked away in the reply to the very first letter, hiding behind an attempt at "Bunnie's" faux Southern accent, are some lines that caused me to sit up and take notice: Our editorial staff try to keep a loose -- what's that word again -- continuity goin' in the books since the King's return. Why? 'Cause every issue brings its own little surprises and affects everybody in Mobius month after month. Never mind the breakdown of the accent, never mind the false modesty that comes off like cluelessness, never mind the fact that having a character talk about the "editorial staff" demolishes the fourth wall between the world of the story and the reader. This was an important statement on Archie's part. Tom Wolfe put it best when he wrote in _The Painted Word_: I knew what I was looking at. I realized that without making the slightest effort I had come upon one of those utterances in search of which psychoanalysts and State Department monitors of the Moscow or Belgrade press are willing to endure a lifetime of tedium: namely, the seemingly innocuous *obiter dicta*, the words in passing, that give the game away. We all know how complex the stories have been getting even before "Endgame" began. Later on I plan to detail just how many loose ends have to be tied up in "Endgame" alone! But it appears that the phrase "loose continuity" as defined by Archie Comics' editorial staff (meaning that some new angle is introduced in every issue) is the staff's way of saying: "We know we can't tie up all the loose ends of 'Endgame' in #50. As a matter of fact, we won't even TRY!" The editorial staff will simply make the stories as complex as they need to be, and probably more so, while placing themselves under NO OBLIGATION WHATSOEVER TO THE READER TO RESOLVE MATTERS BY THE END OF THE STORY AND/OR ARC. I can't function that way as a fanfic writer, as I write each story to stand on its own. But having established Archie's policy with regard to story structure it's time we took a look at that policy in practice: Endgame: Part 3: "Escape From The Floating Island" [Yeah, I know, Sonic doesn't even GET to the Floating Island until near the end of the story, and even then it's all he can do to figure out how to keep his hedgehog head on his shoulders. Looks like the device of tacking the story title onto the last frame sorta broke down in this case. But hey, nobody ever said loose continuity was easy.] Story: Mike Gallagher and Ken Penders Art: Sam Maxwell Just as a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, so the Spaz/Harvo cover suffers from a single flaw that compromises the whole composition. The flaw, in this case, is Dulcy. I know her gestures and expression are meant to convey extreme effort in trying to spirit Sonic away from his pursuers. Unfortunately, the end result makes it look more like she's suffering from some uncomfortable physical ailment. Between the attitude of her arms and her facial expression she appears to be fighting a losing battle against constipation. In which case she could probably USE some "loose continuity." I'm sorry, but it's hard to take this cover seriously so long as Dulcy looks like she's trying to take a dump. It brings the whole cover down and puts it in the running for Worst Cover Art of 1997. From there we proceed to the Semi-Obligatory Splash Page. This is Sam Maxwell's second splash page so far. In the one for "Battle Royal" he showed the Mobians as pawns in Mammoth Mogul's chess game; here, Sonic and Sally are marionettes being manipulated by Robotnik. You might want to talk with a psychiatrist about those control issues, Sam. And speaking of psychiatric help, Ivo could use a dose himself. C'mon, a grown man playing with dolls! RDB note: you obviously haven't read alt.sex.plushies... :^| Unless that's not Sonic's TAIL dangling down between his legs, in which case maybe Robotnik should just forget about therapy and get a girlfriend. Can't put it off any longer, let's get to the story. Rather than stand around and take a crossbow bolt to the head (making good on the threat Geoffrey's been making since "And One Shall Save Him", #41), Sonic leaps off the cliff. Sonic realizes that he's "mentally and physically exhausted" by the story so far (as Bunnie might say: "Y'all ain't the ONLY one, sugar-hog!") and a lesser hero in his situation might submit to the inevitable and make the wry observation that at least he's going to meet the same fate as his late beloved Sally. But Sonic has one last chance, and it is a masterpiece of bad writing and worse science. Try THIS out on your science teacher, kids: he pulls off one of his sneakers, somehow collects a handful of dirt from the inside, manages to throw said handful of dirt which suddenly increases in volume to form a kind of arc which is strong enough to support his weight as he runs across it to (relative) safety. Well, at least we now know why Ken Penders teamed up with Mike Gallagher for this installment: Ken wanted to rely on the scientific expertise of the same writer who tried convincing us in "Sonic Blast" that if you work fast enough you can pack water into "waterballs", in violation of I don't know how many laws of molecular science. Sorry, Mike, but don't plan on picking up your Nobel Prize for Physics any time soon. While Sonic catches his breath, Geoffrey (whose physique is starting to look something like Captain America's) knows there's no way he could plausibly duplicate that dirt trick so he and his forces start backtracking down to the ground. Sonic picks himself up and starts making his way back to Knothole. Back at Knothole, Robotnik gives the King one last order: "Say 'Good night,' Gracie!" He then presses a very prominent button (which we haven't been allowed to see before and which apparently missed the notice of EVERYONE ELSE in Knothole!) on the back of the King's head, and he promptly goes to pieces. Yep, the King was a bot. Who'da thunk it? Not me; I thought the "King" was a recruit from the world of the Antisonic myself. Such a plot twist would have avoided the obvious, which everyone else on the list seems to have spotted. Well, it was a nice theory while it lasted. Robotnik then tells the assembled Mobians that he's letting them live until some unspecified "weapon of destruction" is finished. At which point, THEY'LL be finished. Meanwhile Dr. Quack is submitting the results of his work to...Snively. He gives him Sally's Death Certificate, which lists her name as "ACORN, Sally Elisha." Which was a surprise to me because Sally didn't LOOK Jewish! C'mon! "Elisha" is a guy's name, specifically the name of an Old Testament prophet! At first that seemed like a clue as to Sally's fate, since in II Kings 4 Elisha is credited with resurrecting the son of a Shunamite woman. But I figured that was a little TOO obscure of a Biblical reference. Anyway, after giving Snively the impression that he's delivered his *quid*, the doc wants to see some *quo*. In response, Snively presses a button...on the back of his hand! At NO point in the Sonic story has it even been HINTED that Snively was a bot, but that's loose continuity for ya. Dr. Quack does this really weird take; frankly he looks like a duck getting goosed. At once a wall slides out of the way to reveal...one of the hoariest old gimmicks around: the good doctor's family being held hostage. Quack runs to them, viewed from the back at a really weird angle. In "The Dream Zone" (#43) Quack mentioned that he'd studied under Dr. Frankenstein; from the look of the panel on the top of page 9 my guess is he was also a body double for Igor the Hunchbacked Assistant. The doc threatens Snively and is promptly shot by a nearby Combot; however, since Dr. Quack is up and babbling in the next panel it's safe to assume that the Combot's phaser was set on STUN. The doc is then assigned a new patient: the real King Acorn, who is still in the process of turning into a piece of costume jewelry. So either the doc continues to play nice with Snively or else his wife and hatchlings will end up covered in brown sauce and hanging in the window of a Chinese deli. "And back to Sonic", it says. About time, too. He is nearing Knothole but is fatigued. He wonders out loud, as many of us have wondered in private, "How much longer is this going to drag on?" Now THERE'S a cue! I'll spare you Gallagher's description of Sonic's whistling: it's just as scientifically unsound (no pun intended) as the dirt bit but not nearly as stupid. Anyway, Dulcy makes her appearance in the story, looking much more on-model and much less bloated than she did in "Battle Royal". She gives Sonic what nobody else in Knothole seems to be able to give him: the benefit of the doubt. She then whisks him off just in time for Sonic to avoid capture by Geoffrey yet again! Quick cut to Hershey's place. Gallagher's scientific bulldada has had such a pervasive effect on Knothole that Hershey's mirror begins to defy the laws of optics. Look at the second panel on page 13; between the angle of her head and the placement of her arms, there's NO WAY that her reflection corresponds to her body placement. Drago, however, suffers from no such problem. Must be a sexist mirror. It's certainly a sexist sequence because we get treated to Drago abusing Hershey, physically, verbally, and (if all that garbage about her wearing a patently phony-looking Sonic suit to send Sally to her death in #47 is too much of a strain for you to believe) psychologically. Do they REALLY need to show Hershey being slapped around in order to keep this story moving? Break for the Fan Art page. Like Sam Maxwell, Michelle Niese's drawing of Dulcy is the only one that's anywhere near on- model. And the "Find Your Name in Print" page -- nice drawing of Sonic but it makes a lousy watermark. Same advice as before, guys: LOSE THE WALLPAPER! As if following the story up until now was bad enough, it's time to cut to Downunda. Specifically to the site which was once the location of Echidnopolis before it became the Floating Island, and the scene of Tails' encounter with Athair in the Tails miniseries, "Southern Crossover." We are told it now "reeks of suffering, despair, and palpable malevolence." But the Archie staff will have to hold their story conference somewhere else because the spot is needed for the scene where Bunnie and Antoine are thrown in jail. Bunnie has been fitted with a collar wired to her robotic limbs. As it's explained for our benefit: "Any attempt to use your bionic appendages will trigger your collar alarm which in turn will activate the explosive device on [Antoine's] collar." Hmmm, "any attempt to use your bionic appendages" -- you mean like for walking? Unless that collar can sense HOW she uses her limbs she should have taken the top of Antoine's head off by now. Not that it couldn't use a trim; it appears that Bunnie and Antoine have acquired a case of Baby Head Syndrome, the malady which afflicted Tails in "Battle Royal" and made him look horribly off- model. Actually, Sam compensated in Bunnie's case and made the eyes somewhat larger; she looks cute but still infantile. They're not alone, though, for two of the Downunda Freedom Fighters share their cell with them: Walt Wallaby and Barby Koala. The cross that THEY have to bear is that Sam has followed (after a fashion) the modeling for the characters provided by Dave Manak for the miniseries. Walt now looks more like a dog (or some kind of canid) than a wallaby; Barby still looks more like a tricked-up lab rat than an actual koala. Too bad she can't settle on one look: on page 17 she's shown looking "normal"; two panels later, a close-up reveals scratches and bruises that we didn't notices before, and these signs of having been roughed up simply disappear in the following panel. Uh, Sam, there's a SLIGHT difference between "loose continuity" and BAD continuity, and this is BAD continuity!!! Enter the local villain, CrocBot. Seems when he went over the cliff into the crater in the miniseries he was riding in a tank; he now part-tank. I'll spare you his exposition of rebuilding his army and capturing the DFF. Next on his to-do list: mercilessly torture Antoine and Bunnie, send their "ragged remains" to Tails to motivate him to come to Downunda, and exact revenge for the miniseries. Then he needs to check his oil and rotate his tires. Sonic and Dulcy approach the Floating Island. Knuckles gives them his traditional greeting: he punches Dulcy's lights out. Wait a minute: Hershey got slapped around by Drago, Barby (in close-up) looked like she was beaten up, and now Knuckles punches out Dulcy (who's a lady dragon but still a lady). I know Archie is trying to pander to the preadolescent boys' market but this is really starting to show questionable taste! But just to show he's an equal opportunity bruiser with a short memory (I mean, what happened to all that camaraderie after Sally knighted him at the end of "Battle Royal"?), he starts wailing on Sonic and they mix it up for one page until, on the last page, Geoffrey crashes the party in an effort to FINALLY draw some blood! Preferably Sonic's. Sonic pin-up by Nelson Rebury and Harvo. And the aforementioned Sonic-Grams (or Bunnie-Grams in this case). Freddy begins his spiel thus: "NEXT ISSUE IS THE BIG FIVE-O!!! Which is why it's fitting that it should be called "The Big Goodbye"." Actually, it's NOT fitting, unless you hadn't planned to run any issues after #50, but never mind. "This one is everything you expect a fiftieth issue to be." Except that it's SHORTER than I (or even Ken Penders) had expected it to be! But in a concession to the reality of having Ken's page allotment cut from 40 to 24, Fred has backpedaled on Paul Castiglia's hype and declared that the issue will feature "ALMOST every single writer and artist who ever worked on Sonic" (emphasis mine). It will be interesting to see who got left on the cutting-room floor. It would be even MORE interesting if we could see how Ken had WANTED to end the story arc. Maybe when Ken finally gets his own Web page he can post the original 40-page installment he'd planned; call it "Endgame: The Director's Cut". Has a nice ring to it. So, where do we stand? We're in the home stretch of the story arc and aside from the questions we had quite apart from "Endgame" (f'rinstance, WAS that Sonic's dad being roboticized in the beginning of #46?), the following questions may (or may not) be answered: Is Sally alive or dead? Will Robotnik finish his new weapon and destroy any of the Freedom Fighters? Why is Knuckles pounding on Sonic in light of the ending of "Battle Royal"? Will the King EVER get returned to normal? When will the Knothole crowd discover that the Sword they have in their possession is really just a glorified letter opener because Mammoth Mogul has the genuine article? Will Geoffrey finally nail Sonic in the head? How did Drago manage that bit with Hershey and the Sonic suit? Will Snively be having Dr. Quack's family over for dinner? "I ate her with faba beans and a nice Chianti." Is the change of Sally's middle name a clue, a typo, or just a screw-up? And if she IS Jewish, perhaps it's just as well that (through my sig) I've been symbolically saying Kaddish for her ever since #47 shipped. What will Crocbot do to Bunnie and Antoine? Will Hershey appear on Sally Jesse Raphael's next show: "Cartoon Women Who Continue To Stay With The Toons Who Beat Them"? And how many of these questions will simply be shined off in the name of "loose continuity"? It's too early to speak of the "Endgame" arc as a whole, but I have to wonder about this "roller coaster ride" that Paul Castiglia spoke of. When I was riding the roller coasters at the late, lamented Riverview amusement park in the Chicago of my youth, they tended to go up and down and you sometimes had a chance to catch your breath before the next plunge. So far, "Endgame" has been a straight shot down to the ground with some lurching from side to side, with a promise that on the LAST TWO PAGES we'll pull out of the dive. Maybe. For right now, though, it feels more like dental surgery: four months of pain that ends NOT with you feeling better, but with you simply not feeling the pain you had going in. Hey, it was Ken who called Sally's death "a kick in the teeth" for the fans, not me! And no, I'm NOT going to let you forget that metaphor if I can help it! And for the record I'm STILL convinced that, between the heavy editing of the story Ken has had to do, the "All-Star Jam" gimmick of relying on so many artists, and the editorial doctrine of "loose continuity", #50 has the potential of being a narrative and artistic train wreck of Biblical proportions! But enough of the bitterness: let's anticipate #50 as it might have been rendered in the mindless Marvel manner: Three vile villains have combined their powers to defeat Sonic: PARSIMONIUS: Able to distort time and space by cutting a writer's page allotment! GIMMICK KING: He blows the minds of his victims by changing artists every three pages or so! THE HYPEMEISTER: He exhausts his opponents by keeping their expectations so high for so long they're reduced to helplessness! These three have combined their powers to form one mighty villainess. Someone who makes Rita Repulsa look like Mother Theresa! Someone who can destroy the Sonicverse as we know it! Join us for issue #50 when it's the titanic struggle of: SONIC versus AUNTIE CLIMAX!!! Knuckles #1-3 [Apr-Jun 1997] "The Dark Legion" Story: Ken Penders and Kent Taylor; Art; Manny Gala'n and Andrew Pepoy Cover: Spaziante and Penders collaborate (for the first time, I believe) in a three-way cover for the miniseries. Impressive, even though it looks like the whole triptych takes place under water. Part 1: Army of Darkness "The lessons of history and culture have always been handed down from one generation to the next," we are told in the text that pretty much obliterates the panels on the splash page. You don't have to raise your hands, but how many of you read it all the way through before getting on with the action? Well, there's a lot of ground to cover so in the words of a certain hedgehog who'll play no role whatever in this story, "Let's do it to it": Even before we get to the title, we (sort of) see Knuckles' dad from the previous miniseries and other stories going back to "Fathers and Sons" looking at a bank of monitors, one of which shows (oddly enough) a cattle skull. I suppose showing a saguaro cactus would have said "desert" just as much, but never mind. He seems to be talking to himself, yet he also calls himself "brother". Before he can get around to diagnosing himself as having multiple personalities, some kind of space-time portal in the sky opens and the title army enters. The AoD consists of hooded figures riding in open flying saucers, a lot of robots which look like they fought against Superman in the 1930s, and the occasional tank. We then Quick cut (QC for short -- better get used to that abbreviation) to Knuckles and Archimedes kicking back. Archie suddenly senses Knuckles' dad trying to contact him telepathically. While the ant dithers about whether to tell Knuckles -- in a situation sort of like having Caller I.D. and letting the phone ring while you make up your mind whether to answer it -- Knuckles picks up on something... QC to "The Past" where everything was mostly orange and yellow. We join Edmund and Dimitri explaining the mechanics of the Chaos syphon to the assembled echidnas. For the first time, we see not only an ant delegation at that meeting but also a visitor's gallery where the families are seated. Since they lack "Hi! My name is..." tags, we can only guess that the wives and children of Edmund and Dimitri (one each) are in attendance; none of them are named. About all we can really tell about the players at this point is that Dimitri's son is starting to grow a Mohawk; either that or he was Mr. T in another incarnation. QC to the present as Knuckles goes looking for trouble while Archie continues talking to himself. Knuckles finds what he was looking for. One of the robots picks up "heat signatures ten kilometers to the right." If the bot was talking about Knuckles and Archie, it should get a tune up -- the pair are maybe ten FEET from the bot, not ten kilometers. Besides, ants are cold-blooded and shouldn't even HAVE a heat signature; of course, we ARE talking about a fire-breathing ant, so let that pass. QC to the destruction of Mount Fate. Turns out the name of Dimitri's son is "Menniker"; I tried looking it up but couldn't find anything. Ken manages to work in the ant quotation from Proverbs one more time before we QC to the present. The bot almost finds Archie and Knuckles but they do that disappearing thing. Having gone through about 5 quick changes in 8 pages, Archie gives us a break and eases us into the next flashback, showing the Echidna Hall of Science (which bears a certain resemblance to Bruno Taut's "Glass Pavilion", part of the 1914 Werkbund Exhibition in Cologne, Germany -- who says comic books aren't educational?). RDB note: actually, _you're_ doing the educating - most of us wouldn't have known that if you didn't point it out :^) We then witness a wrenching little domestic drama: apparently the decision to dial back echidna technology was not unanimous. So we are treated to the sight of a VCR and a Sega Saturn unit being confiscated from one household where the husband, a Mr. Arrunda, shouts his objections while the Mrs. complies with the order because she's had it up to her eyelashes with "foozball", which I always thought was a game played by a couple drunken college guys in a sports bar. Or is that "foosball"? Anyway, Edmund's son and Menniker's cousin, Steppenwolf (named after the title character in the Herman Hesse novel -- and THAT I was able to verify from Ken Penders himself, BTW) is part of the clean-up crew. Unfortunately, in a scene that had to be guesswork instead of a true flashback, Menniker appears to have been hoarding technology. Fan Art: You wonder why Archie published a lame story like "Battle Royal"? Sandy Lamison's fan art explains a lot about the core constituency. "I want my Knuckles' comic now!!!" Name Page: "Cool out"? QC to the present. Archie materializes on the bot's shoulder and Knuckles comes down swinging. He's only able to take out a couple bots before having to retreat in a burst of repartee between himself and Archie, while a hooded figure with a gleam in its eye(?) orders the other Legionnaires to give chase. QC back to the high-tech roundup. Steppenwolf tells his dad that there's some underground discontent with the decision. He speaks of the opposition, "the kind that skulk in the shadows" and wear these hooded robes that make their members stick out like sore thumbs. Steppenwolf follows one of these inconspicuous insurrectionists to a meeting of Dimitri's disciples. Naturally, since he ISN'T dressed like a Jawa stand-in, Steppenwolf is spotted by the anti-Luddites and they give pursuit. QC to Knuckles rounding up the Chaotix. They start with Vector, who appears to be Hooked On Ebonics. Mighty, Charmy and Espio join them and they set up a 4-page slugfest that ends in a strategic withdrawal as well as a QC to Steppenwolf escaping via flying saucer but not very far before his craft is shot down. Two of the crew land to make sure Steppenwolf has bought the farm. All they had to do was have him change his name to "Sally Elisha." QC to Knuckles recognizing lousy odds when he sees them. The [Chaotix] are then introduced to the head honcho: KRAGOK OF BORG. Well, he IS rather retrofitted. He also shares a characteristic with Enerjak in that their names seem to have been inspired by losing hands of Scrabble. "Postcards From The Edge Of The Floating Island": No wonder they're shopping around for a new name! And some leftover uncredited fan art. Caught your breath yet? Part 2: Sins of the Fathers. After a rude awakening Knuckles is taken to Kragok for questioning. As they begin we QC to "The Past" again (hope you hadn't planned on staying in one place). Specifically, to a council of ants. Apparently the echidnas hadn't had anyone in Edmund's position before. An ant named Christopheles is more or less volunteered to "guide" Edmund, who on the next page is practicing his Bruce Wayne lines to audition for the next "Batman" movie. Christopheles starts to explain things to Edmund but when he lets slip the news that Steppenwolf is in danger, Edmund mounts a Pasha (some horse or other that reminds me of that figurine from "The Black Stallion") and rides off to the rescue. Hey, they really DO have a thing against technology! BTW, Ken has stated that he hoped that depicting the Pasha would spark some discussion about Mobian life forms amongst the fans. Ken, I wouldn't expect a lot of talk from the readers about horses until their minds have been put at ease about the fate of a certain ground squirrel. We've got our priorities, y'know? QC to Knuckles trying to punch out Kragok. Guess he was working up for "Battle Royal" and Sonic #49. Anyway, he gets beaten up for his efforts. Kragok then asks Knuckles where the Chaos Chamber is located. Knuckles refuses to answer...so Kragok orders his people to beat up on Knuckles some more. Knuckles manages to overcome three guards, knocking one into a tanning bed (BOY, these guys love their technology!). He then gets into a robe in order to QC to Edmund as he comes upon the two DLers sifting through the wreckage of Steppenwolf's saucer; no sign of Steppenwolf or the Pasha, BTW. He then manages to get the drop on the two of them before a shot rings out and Edmund's glasses drop and shatter. Slightly more poetic [than] watching Sally become roadkill. Fan Art: In terms of design alone, Jeff Carnell has a nice sense. "I Want...." OK, OK, they HEARD you already! Steppenwolf then appears out of nowhere, thanks to the magic of Bad Writing; we have NO IDEA WHATSOEVER of how he survived the saucer crash or where he was while his old man was getting wasted. As Steppenwolf mourns his father's demise, Christopheles appears and offers his help. Before Steppenwolf asks whether he can resurrect the dead, we QC to the Chaotix, who are being sprung by the disguised Knuckles. In the midst of the break, Archie reappears by Knuckles' dad just in time for yet another alarm to go off. No, THIS time we're not talking about any DLers but an old holdover: Athair, still walking around in shower clogs. You can tell from the icicles hanging from Knuckles' dad's dialogue balloon that this isn't going to be a Kodak moment. But since we're on a roll QC to the DL base camp where the Chaotix roll a tank down a hill and into the camp as a diversion to cover their escape while they QC BACK to Athair and Knuckle's dad, who is called "Grandson" by Athair; that makes the superannuated echidna Knuckles' great- granddad. Just as we're on the verge of watching Knuckles' dad reopen some old family wound... GOTCHA! Bet you thought it'd be another QC! No, but we ARE treated to a cameo by the Ancient Walkers. They provide some backlighting for Athair, and then the four of them promptly disappear. Athair says "Consider this your warning" -- now THERE's a statement that covers a lot of ground without telling US anything! Knuckles' dad then convinces Archie to stay with him rather than rejoin the Chaotix. As a result we QC to Steppenwolf's physical, mental and spiritual (!) development under Christopheles, after which he's introduced to the Chaos Emerald. His ability to mentally tap into its energy and levitate was apparently some kind of final exam. Steppenwolf is then set out in the middle of nowhere and just happens to pass through some invisible/dimensional gateway into the headquarters seen in Part 1. Well, we FINALLY know how Knuckles' dad managed that wall of flames vanishing act in "Fathers and Sons". From the base of operations, called "Haven," QC to hell as the Chaotix, still on the lam from the DL, find themselves cut off by a forest fire started by the Legion's tanks. Now you or I might think being trapped in a forest fire would be enough peril and a suitable cliffhanger for one issue; but we're not executives, are we? I have a sinking feeling that some higher- up at Archie took one look at the ending of the issue and said: "Hey! Make it a forest fire AND a stampede!" So we're treated to the Chaotix about to be trampled by a bunch of inhabitants of the Floating Island we've never seen before (for the most part) and whose only purpose for existing (at this point) is to provide a convenient plot device! And Ken wonders why the Pasha didn't elicit more comments. Part 3: "Blood is Thicker" but you can't show it in the comic. "What does one do when faced with an enemy whose resources seem limitless, whose numbers are many, and whose goal is total victory no matter "what" the cost?" If you're an editor, you wonder why there are quotation marks around the word WHAT. If you're an echidna named Knuckles, you let Freddy worry about that sort of thing while you try to figure how to get your caboose out of the way of the stampede. So you have Mighty push a tree down in front of the oncoming stampede and hope that everyone has read the script and knows not to try jumping over the fallen tree or to run into it and cause a pile-up. As for the forest fire, you have Vector implement a firefighting solution worthy of Mike (Mr. Science) Gallagher: have him point his itty-bitty headphones at the fire and pump up the volume enabling him to not only blow out the fire but send some saucers containing the DL tumbling. Back when I lived in Chicago, a morning radio guy named Johnny Brandmeier used to have listeners crank up their car stereo speakers REAL LOUD; that trick never put out any forest fires but it DID blow out some speakers. However, if you're an echidna named Knuckles you let someone else worry about plausibility factor of these kind of stunts while the editor worries about the next RDB note: reference my previous comment about accepting impossibilities but not implausibilities... QC to the Hall of Science, which is under attack by the DLes. Seems the assembled echidnas are beginning to think that confiscation of private property may not have been the best idea they ever had, as their society is about to slide into civil war. Some civil wars are fought over race, others over larger issues such as religion or slavery; THIS one looks like it's going to be about microwave ovens and garage door openers. Steppenwolf then enters to make his case and to lead us through three VERY scary pages, though Ken and Kent probably didn't plan it that way. Steppenwolf barely opens his mouth when a member of the council named Garak decides that echidna interests would best be served at this point by his arranging a father-son reunion for Steppenwolf and Edmund. He pulls out a blaster that resembles a 1950's era tin toy and points it as Steppenwolf, who walks up to point-blank range and says in effect: "Go ahead; make your day." The two stand eyeball-to-eyeball and Garak blinks. Having demonstrated his spiritual superiority (or at least his ability to play poker), Steppenwolf launches into some speech making. It was probably MEANT to sound heroic, having to do with unifying a torn society and so forth. What we GET, unfortunately, is something truly spooky -- a speech that manages to combine elements of Bill Clinton on the campaign trail (when he talks about building a bridge between the factions) and Adolf Hitler at the Nuremberg Nazi Party rallies (when he talks about accepting the "New Order"). While he then advises the assembled echidnas to "choose wisely" he really hasn't given them much to choose from: essentially, it's a choice between Plan A and Plan A. Which he's going to go out and implement anyway. The High Councilor is so inspired by this nonsense that he actually manages to use the phrase "we shall overcome"; apparently he thinks he's in the middle of the Million Echidna March. Let's clarify something: Herman Hesse's 1927 psychological novel "Steppenwolf" had to do with (among other things) the notion that while most members of bourgeois society [insist] on viewing themselves in a rigid manner that produces [sheeplike] behavior, only those few individuals who can think of themselves in broader terms can become the leaders of their fields. Which is fine, except that there's a dark side to this theme as well: the belief in the providential leading of a strong solitary visionary. This sort of thing can be relatively harmless in the context of literature, such as Ayn Rand's "The Fountainhead" where overwhelming artistic ego wears the disguise of high-minded devotion to principle. When the word is made flesh in the political sphere, however, the results are likely to be a Hitler or a Stalin or a Pol Pot. In this case, Steppenwolf's words happened to be tempered by his deeds -- his not taking action against Garak for wanting to part his dreadlocks with a blaster. The writers have still given voice to a dangerous impulse, though, whether they meant to take the gamble or not. Frankly, I was glad when the sequence was over and we could RDB note: (not meant as a flame): so does all this literary knowledge enhance or detract from your enjoyment of the comic? Having no such knowledge (I stuck to Tom Swift and the Hardy Boys growing up :^)), I just took the story at face value (such as it was...) Again, not meant as a flame, but I almost think you know too much for your own good here :^| Good commentary though, keep it up! QC to the Chaotix pulling themselves together, disguising themselves in DL cloaks and swiping a few saucers. They join a bunch of other saucers to converge on a mushroom-shaped hanger of some sort. Whoever else is watching Knux and the gang, his father and Archie are able to monitor the situation from within Haven. The two banter a bit before Archie is sent to him, while Knuckles' dad refers to his kid as "our future guardian." Since when did he get put on probation? They land and follow the crowd to the Great Hall where Kragok the Marginally Pronounceable tells the assembled multitude that with "the last son of Edmund burned to a crisp" [I assume he's speaking figuratively here], they will soon be in possession of the Chaos Emerald. That's Knuckles' cue to leap on stage and confront Kragok...while we pause for an ad for junk food-flavored lip gloss, the Fan Art page, and the by now superfluous "I want..." page. All this just before we QC to the past where, without any explanation or exposition, we see Steppenwolf stepping up to confront the leader of the DL, who turns out to be (to nobody's surprise) Menniker. There follows the Obligatory Bad Guy Exposition in which Menniker tells how he sensed his dad trying to "send...a message"; apparently he didn't realize that his old man was really in the process of morphing into Enerjak and the message was "Could you please come up with a name that doesn't sound so stupid?". Anyway, Steppenwolf cuts this whole business short by opening up some kind of space-time portal in the sky which sucks up Menniker and the Legionnaires. Since the portal bears a resemblance to the one that deposited Kragok and his boys into this story two issues ago, one wonders whether Kragok and Menniker are the same. Kragok never takes off his hood so there's no way we can see if he has the distinctive echidna Mohawk or not. Anyway, we then do a SLOW DISSOLVE (!) from then to now as Knuckles and Kragok face off. There's about a page or two of fighting while Knuckles' dad talks about how he blasted Dimitri/Enerjak into orbit in "Rites of Passage" #3; he then goes into some kind of lotus position that knocks out the Legion's weapons. While Knuckles gives chase after Kragok (just as Archie shows up), the Villain's Fortress Begins to Self-Destruct (have you ever known one that DIDN'T?). The Chaotix and eventually Knuckles (whose quarry has eluded him) escape and on that rather hollow note and accompanied by a quote from the Firesign Theater's celebrated "Nick Danger: Third Eye" routine, it's over. Very successful storytelling, in that the QC-ing back and forth didn't manage to lose the reader. RDB note: speak for yourself :^) The lapses in logic (the fighting fire with headphones bit) are generally forgivable, though Ken and Kent could have taken a LITTLE effort to determine how Steppenwolf escaped the saucer crash; as it is, it has the feel of hack writing. And the Team of Gala'n and Pepoy turn in EXTREMELY impressive work. Gala'n may have found his calling here, being to Knuckles what Art Mawhinney is to Sonic. And speaking of Sonic, I have to ask: WHY does Ken seem to have experienced a creative renaissance as a writer having moved on to do Knuckles stories while the quality of the writing for Sonic (and NOT just by Ken) is showing a decline? And that goes for the as-yet unfinished "Endgame" as well! From what we've seen in the Knuckles' series and from what's to come--based on things he told me at the Motor City Comic Con--NOT writing for Sonic seems to agree with him. Has the blue blur burned him out? Is he so resentful of the canonicity of the SatAM cartoon that he finds Knuckles to be a kind of "tabula rasa"--a "clean slate" on which he can work with a freer hand? I can't say. I can only hope that the talent will be spread around and that Knuckles' success won't come at the expense of the Sonic line; otherwise, the Brave New World is going to have a shorter shelf-life than the OLD one! #50 [Sep 1997] "The Big Goodbye" [Endgame: Part 4] Cooks: Too many. Pat Spaziante/Ken Penders computer-rendered cover. Looks WAY more impressive than the images I've seen online. One MORE reason not to trust the preview publications. FOR THE NEWBIES: If you're just joining us, please keep in mind that Ken Penders designed this story to run 40 pages, as part of what was planned to be a 48-page "Special" for Sonic #50. SOMEWHERE along the way, though, that number got cut back by something like 40%! PLEASE keep that fact in mind as it will help explain some of the...uh...UNIQUE aspects of pacing, timing, and plotting in this story. Ladies and gentlemen, this match has a 27 page limit. Let's get ready to FUMBLE! First on the card is the Art Mawhinney/Andrew Pepoy splash page. No, I didn't bother reading it. Yes, I tried following the ComBot's 4-bank shot that set Antoine's toupee on fire. Why does this remind me of a "Mad Magazine" PARODY of a Sonic comic? The artist might as well have been Jack Davis, Mort Drucker, or Sergio Aragones. Then again, given the number of artists taking part in THIS turkey shoot, maybe one of Mad's "usual gang of idiots" DID draw this. First into the ring on page 1: the team of Penders (story), Spaziante (pencil), and Pepoy (ink). You think Robotnik had a cheesy moustache before, wait'll you see the one he's sporting here: looks like he's got a couple mice jammed up his nose. He's apparently on the run from two humanoids with names (one borrowed, one botched) from "Babylon 5". ALREADY with the in-jokes! Could've been worse; they MIGHT have been named Sculley and Muldar. Anyway, they're hunting "Julian, son of Ivo" to bring him back to "the minister", and I don't think it's because he stood up the bride at a wedding. He lands face-first in a mud hole and manages to avoid being noticed by the two humans (neat trick for something THAT bulky!) but he IS found by Jules and Charles, a couple blue hedgehogs. Jules is the one with the improbable shock of brown hair growing out of his forehead like a unicorn's horn. Against [Charles's] better judgment, Julian is presented to the King and (in a thankless cameo) the Warlord Kodos last seen in "The Dream Zone" (#43). Fat Boy appears ready to spill his guts (no small task) concerning what he knows about the humans with which the animals are at war. That's right: the Great War was Overlanders vs. Mobians, Skins vs. Furs. The Mobians take this sizable serpent into their bosom; Julian grows a bad moustache. Well, THAT was interesting. And pointless! Fact is, that little 3-page digression had NOTHING AT ALL to do with the Endgame story arc to date, let alone this installment. It's three wasted pages, and since Ken had so many pages cut out from under him he needed all the help he could get. Leaving them in was a huge mistake. The sequence served about as much purpose (in this context) as would a scene of Bunnie dropping her top and flashing her hoo-ha's: maybe it's something a number of fans would like to see, but what business does it have HERE? Page 4: Penders tags in Mike Gallagher and Spaziante tags in Manny Galan. We're back where we left off last issue (which REALLY underscores how useless that Great War bit was). Sonic tries to talk Knuckles into helping him, but Geoffrey St. John tells Knux that Sonic is "Princess Sally's assassin." Sonic eludes Knuckles but Espio decloaks and seizes him so Geoff's gopher henchmen can tie him up. Their names, BTW, are "Smiley" and "Fleming"; great, we're using allusions to spy novels now! Anyway, Dulcy (whom Knuckles clobbered in the last ish) comes to and puts her foot down. Her word is instantly taken as gospel truth and Geoff finally realizes there's a divide-and-conquer thing happening here. Page 7: Nelson Ortega in for Galan, Brian Thomas in for Pepoy. Tails and Rotor manage to elude the furry round-up back at Knothole. They climb down a ladder (in a VERY nicely drawn panel, BTW) to the underground pier, only to find that Drago got there first and scuttled the Sea Fox and Rotor's bathysphere. Meanwhile, Robotnik is informed by an off-model CrocBot that despite the fact that "the mineral ore" is on its way to him there's been a riot at the prison camp. Hope you were paying attention just now because [that's] about ALL the exposition you're going to get to explain what happens to the Downunda subplot. Couldn't [they?] have spared ONE LOUSY PAGE from the Prologue to help the narrative along? Might as well not have sent Antoine and Bunnie there at all. Rotor and Tails are being herded into Model A roboticizers -- the kind from the first Sonic game -- when Sonic, Knux and Geoff get the drop on their captors by jumping out of a plane. Knuckles wins the Iron Man title by NOT using a parachute. Page 10: Brand new team (Karl Bollers for script, Sam Maxwell for pencil, Pam Eklund for inking) but the same old fight sequence. Maxwell's style is, of course, a kick in the old continuity; Knuckles looks like he's reverting to ancestral type and is about to turn into an anteater. As for the balloon-headed Sonic, he decides to single out Drago for no particular reason; lacking any real exposition, we can only ASSUME that Geoff clued Sonic in on the way back. The wolf beats feet... Page 12: and becomes WAY more detailed as Dave Manak tags in for Sam Maxwell. Before Sonic can bring Drago down, however, the wolf's hit in the head with a rock thrown by...Hershey! With no apparent motivation, she's suddenly stopped being Drago's punching bag. Gee, it took someone in my family six months of sobriety and a LOT of Alcoholics Anonymous meetings before she could stand up to HER abusive spouse. Hershey then confesses her part in Sally's demise to Sonic. Frankly, her confession would be more convincing if she didn't look like she was trying to worf up a hairball. Two words for Manak's depiction of Hershey: "Ugh lee!" Let's see, she went from Mawhinney/androgynous in #47 to Galan/large-eyed and babe-ular in #48 to Maxwell/rubbery in #49 to Manak/what the cat dragged in here. This kid's had more changes of appearance than Michael Jackson! Anyway, Sonic decides that Hershey's not to blame. Robotnik, meanwhile, gets the old good news/bad news routine. The good news is that the Downunda ore has arrived; the bad news is that we get to see an extreme close-up of his face. Page 14: Penders back in to relieve Manak, and not a moment too soon. Robotnik's not only got bats in his belfry, but a bunny in his rafters. Bunnie and Antoine offer only a tenuous exposition as to how they went from being chained up in Downunda to back in Robotnik's HQ. Let's not dwell on this and move along. Speaking of moving along, Sonic is seen approaching Robotnik's fortress or whatever it is. The events of the story arc have so addled his brain that he begins speaking in tongues: "If I modulate the frequency of my speed while I run real fast...I should be able to create after-images of myself" in order to confuse the incoming missiles. All this Treknobabble could have been avoided with a simple: "Hey, I'm SONIC; I'll just outrun those slow-mo [missiles]!" But by now it should be clear that NOTHING is going to be simple about this story. Page 16: Once again a whole new team: Kent Taylor in for story, Sam Maxwell in for pencil, Harve Mercadoocasio in for ink, the reader in for a hard time. Sonic (I guess) crashes through a door and (I think) gets tangled up by (what I guess are) flying gloves with cables fired by Snively (or something) who's also shooting Sonic with some liquid that looks like either pea soup or pea soup. Pages 16 and 17 are just a mess; I haven't been this confused since the last time I tried constructing a macro in WordPerfect 6. Sonic knocks Snively out anyway and runs into a VERY underdrawn Bunnie and Antoine; it's almost as if Maxwell didn't so much draw them as squeeze them in. You can only see half their faces at any given time if you see them at all, but considering that this is Sam Maxwell we're talking about, count your blessings. The two inform Sonic that they've planted a bomb in Robotnik's war room; Sonic tells them to scoot while he continues on toward his F2F {face to face} with Robotnik. We are once again treated to an "uncharacteristic" Sonic "devoid of humor" -- translation: Kent Taylor couldn't think of anything funny to write. Page 19: Spaz back in for Maxwell, Sonic in for a beating. He can't do much against Robotnik at close quarters (it says here), but when Robotnik tries activating his wonder weapon it tells him that the system is going down, it will destroy the war room instead of Knothole, and he'd better save his work to a different file. Despite our being told that "all is said and done" between the two, they keep on doing anyway: i.e., beating on each other in a blur of speed lines and jazzy visuals as likely to give the two of them (and the reader) a headache as much as anything else. Page 22: OK, THAT was a mess! Let's bring in Penders as writer, Art Mawhinney as penciller, and Rich Koslowski as inker and try to bring order out of this chaos. Sonic gets sucked into some vortex or other, complains about being tired and passes out. Someone observes that he needs medical attention. Duh! Page 23: Hmmm. Let's bring in Jim Amash to substitute for Koslowski and try again. Pay close attention, PLEASE, I don't want to have to repeat myself. Sonic may have needed medical attention but he has to settle for Dr. Quack instead. He tells Sonic that he's in the "medical facility" back in Knothole -- said facility is looking WAY more rustic than it did back in "The Dream Zone." Sonic says he "saw Knothole destroyed!" Hang on a sec...gee, I guess he was the only one. *I* didn't see any such thing...unless said destruction found its way to the cutting room floor. Now it's Rotor's turn to start with the Treknobabble: According to him [and this kind of cockeyed explanation DESERVES to be quoted at length], Knothole now "exists in a temporal rift three hours in the future". I guess that means Sonic will have to watch his show on the USA Network at 4:00 in the morning instead of 7:00. Or something. HOW Rotor came to this hare-brained conclusion is never explained. He also states that "many zones were created when Robotnik unleashed his device." Presumably he means the device that had its wires crossed and blew up the War Room instead of wasting Knothole. This script had FOUR writers working on it; my guess is that by this point J. Freddy Gabrie was just as confused as we are and in his capacity as editor didn't catch the apparent contradiction. Anyway, you might want to keep that business about the many zones in mind; I think they're going to use that as a handy excuse for some future plots. Quack now supplies a LOT of exposition which, when you boil it down and remove the scum from the top, goes something like this: back in #43 when Quack used the Glorified Gumball Machine in "The Dream Zone", Robotnik was somehow able to home in on the "neutron chip" inside and finally get a fix on Knothole's location. While we were diverted by looking at Sam Maxwell's abominable artwork in "Battle Royal", Robotnik's bots showed up, switched the King with a bot double and kidnapped the doc. With his family as hostages, he had to play along. At the same time, he noticed that Drago was setting up Sally to buy the harp farm and...OK, I'm not sure what the following means but here it is in full: [Robotnik's] nephew Snively had other plans. I noticed he altered the neutron eradicator to affect only one organic pattern out of the many originally programmed...only Robotnik could now be affected by the device. So that means that...frankly, I don't know WHAT that means or WHERE this "neutron eradicator" (which MAY or MAY NOT be the same as the "Ultimate Annihilator") fits into the plot. Anyone with the slightest idea PLEASE contact me at drazen@andrews.edu. Sonic is just as confused as I am and, to change the subject, asks about Sally. Page 25: Koslowski back in to sling the ink. The doc tells Sonic that she "nearly died" from the fall (looked convincing to ME!) and has been placed in a "stasis tube" "so she could heal and recover." Sorry, Ken, but I went straight to The Good Book at this point: Michael Okuda's _Star_Trek_Encyclopedia_, wherein I learned that a "stasis unit" "hold[s] a patient in a state of suspended animation UNTIL MEDICAL TREATMENT COULD BE RENDERED." [Emphasis mine] So Sally wouldn't be getting better OR worse inside the thing. The doc then goes on to tell Sonic that she's in a coma "and I couldn't tell you when or even if she'll come out of it." Sonic is tired of Quack talking out of both sides of his bill and dashes off. Page 26: HOLY MOTHER OF DISNEY!!! We're in the middle of a "Snow White" remake! Sonic has apparently seen the movie so he opens the stasis unit, gives Sally a peck on the cheek, says "I love you, Sally! Please come back"... ...and she wakes up. That's IT?? The culmination of all those months of teasing the angle, all those flames, all those posts, all that speculation, all that fan art of Sally with wings and a halo, all those tributes sent to the Cybershrine? It wasn't even a KISS, furcryinoutloud! I happened to get my copy of #50 in the mail on June 16 [the most timely I've ever received it, I might add], the same day USA reran "The Doomsday Project." THAT episode culminated in Sonic and Sally engaging in a kiss that was a KISS! Eyes closed, lips locked, Sally with one foot raised off the ground, an [unmistakeable] unambiguous spit-swapping tongue-probing tonsil-poking I'm-about- to-lose-control-but-I-think-I-like-it communion of SOULS!!! Here, Sonic gives Sally the kind of kiss she would have gotten from her GRANDFATHER! And you know what was the most infuriating thing of all? Mawhinney's drawing of Sonic. I can't believe I'm writing this, but Mawhinney totally dropped the ball here! No tear in Sonic's eye, no turning away from the sight of Sally laid out because it's just too painful; all we get is Sonic with a basically flat [affectation]. Mawhinney is TOO GOOD of an artist to have missed the chance to really bust out with something heartfelt and operatic, something that would have cranked the intensity a couple notches above even the Spaziante fight scenes on pages 19-21! Personally I blame the Sega Superego for keeping the lid on tight and ruining what should have been the crowning moment of the whole sorry story arc. Page [27]: The Sega Thought Police drag Mawhinney away kicking and screaming before he can produce some artwork that might actually get an emotional rise out of the fans, so Spaziante steps in and Ken handles both the writing and the inking on your basic Dragnet/American Graffitti-type ending. Sonic and Sally are shown trying to embrace while keeping at arms' length from each other, like a couple of preadolescents at a Catholic school dance; apparently the Sega chaperone nuns are all over the place with rulers at the ready. The ending tells you what loose ends got tied up and ignores the ones that didn't. Freddy once again hews to the party line and calls this story arc a "runaway roller coaster ride." I'll have more to say about THAT in a little bit, but first, after having looked at Scott Shaw!'s contribution to this issue (one drawing; thanks a lot, Scott), allow me to preface my comments about "Endgame" with the following excerpt from Jean Kerr's _The Snake Has All The Lines_: ...a friend of mine..one Easter...had to prepare dinner for fifteen people, counting children and relatives. For reasons of economy she decided to make a ham loaf instead of the traditional baked ham. Obviously it was going to be four times the trouble, since the recipe for the ham loaf was extremely elaborate: there were a dozen different ingredients and the whole thing had to be made in advance and allowed to "set" overnight in pineapple juice. But she went gamely ahead, convinced that she was going to produce something tastier than baked ham, if not indeed a gourmet's dish. As she took the square pink loaf out of the oven, a sinister thought crossed her mind. She cut off a little slice and tasted it, her worst suspicions confirmed. In tears she flew out of the kitchen to find her husband. "Oh, Frank," she said, "do you know what I've GOT? I've got Spam!" I think it's safe to say at this point that neither Ken Penders, J. Freddy Gabrie, nor anyone else at Archie Comics, PLANNED for "Endgame" to come out the way it did. To have that happen to a story is, in fact, one of the worst fates that can befall a writer. So before we go any further I wish to publicly apologize to Ken Penders for any untoward things I may have said since last September when he broke the news about "Endgame" on the Net. Further, I believe that all Penders-bashing should come to an immediate halt. The man has suffered enough just by witnessing what has become of his story. RDB note: I'm tempted to wonder about bashing him for his _original_ plan for the story (no smiley, but I'm not _too_ serious about that...) So what DID happen? I don't expect anyone at Archie to post something to the lists saying "OK, we blew it big times and here's where we went wrong...." Besides, if they did that we critics would be out of a job! So let me count the ways: 1. THE HOOK. "Endgame" had a hook, something to grab the reader's interest and keep it focused throughout. In this case the hook was supposed to be: "Did Sonic really kill Sally?" Unfortunately, by the end of #47 it was plain that the readers were ready to answer "No way!" The absence of the backpack straps on the "Sonic" who did the nasty was a (forgive the pun) dead giveaway. So the focus shifted to another hook: "Is Sally really dead?" That, too was a good hook. A VERY good hook. In fact, it was TOO good of a hook. It shifted the focus for a lot of fans OFF OF SONIC ALTOGETHER! They KNEW he would elude capture; it was only a question of HOW (or, more specifically, how LAME would the means of escape be). But the ambiguity over Sally's demise created a fan frenzy in some quarters. I certainly sensed it at THIS end of the Net, and that's why I set up the Princess Sally Memorial Cybershrine: as a place for fans to vent their grief and loss. Frankly even I was surprised at times at the intensity of feelings expressed. But only now is it clear that by fudging on Sally's death, Ken [inadvertently] moved it to center stage. It was self-sabotage, pure and simple. 2. PACING. "Endgame" should have followed the elementary three-step progression of so many stories of this kind: I. Something bad happens to the hero II. Hero gets it together III. Hero triumphs All neat and tidy in three acts. So what happened here? For one thing, despite the much-touted roller coaster analogy, "Endgame" ended up more like one of those thrill rides which hoist you hunderds of feet to the top of some tower or other and then you DROP until you level off back at ground level. There was no rise and fall, no emotional flow here, or if there was it was mostly in one direction. The four parts of the arc can be summarized thus: I. Something really bad happens to Sonic II. Bad stuff continues to happen to Sonic (and to his friends) III. See II IV. A WHOLE LOTTA stuff happens to Sonic and everybody and then the story just kinda ends Which brings me to my next point: 3. EDITING. I don't know the circumstances under which Ken went ahead and planned a 40-page finale for "Endgame" only to have it cut back by almost half. When I first heard of this development, I couldn't help but think of Ronald Reagan in one of his better film roles, as a soldier waking up in an Army hospital who realizes that both of his legs have been amputated and who begins screaming: "WHERE'S THE REST OF ME!?" Ken then had to fall back on what he called in one post "judicious editing" to turn the jigsaw puzzle that #50 had become into a coherent climax to the story arc. From some of my comments above, it would appear he wasn't totally successful, which should come as no surprise. And then there was the "a priori editing" that took place (my little euphemism for Sega's censorship of the stories). It really showed up in what was supposed to be the showpiece of the story: Sonic and Sally reunited. Sonic's flat [affectation], the tentative kiss, the arm's length embrace; this was no way to reunite two creatures supposedly in love with each other no matter how unsure they may have been about expressing it in the past. I kept thinking of a line by Bart Simpson: "Milhouse, we're living in the age of cooties; I can't believe the risks you're taking!" Can ANY of the Archie writers turn out believable material with THIS kind of mentality leading the way? 4. GIMMICKRY. I first had a bad feeling about #50 when I heard about the tag team...er..."all-star jam" approach taken toward illustrating the story. It wasn't THAT bad, as it turned out, but it was bad enough in some cases; Hershey in particular was ill- served. Likewise the interplay of four writers on this story, as well as having two writers team up each on #48 and #49. This was the last nail in the "Endgame" coffin. This story arc required...DEMANDED...a steady and consistent hand, a unified vision of where it was going and an unwavering visual approach. The trade-off of writers and artists subverted that requirement, replacing basic meat-and-potatoes narrative structure and artictic unity with what resulted in a free-for-all. Team efforts have worked before: much of Ken Penders' collaborative work with Mike Kanterovich was brilliant. This, however, was a failure of the collaborative process. Instead of a reasoned, coherent approach to the material, the reader saw one bad angle piled on top of another: Sally was killed by Hershey wearing a phony-looking Sonic mask; Sonic escapes certain doom by running across a bridge made by a handful of dirt; Sally survives a fall that was supposed to have killed her and goes into a coma which is so mild she's awakened with an equally mild kiss. Readers can suspend disbelief for only so long. And as I've pointed out before, the irony is that the same Ken Penders who put THIS together seems to be producing coherent, powerful work for the Knuckles line. I have no idea what the "Brave New World" will hold for Sonic, but I have a bad feeling about the High Concept "Mask"-meets-"Casablanca" plot for #52. That kind of storytelling signals a drift away from the basics, away from the ability to produce readable, engaging stories in favor of cheap jokes and cultural grave-robbing. It had better NOT be an indication of a long-term trend, or else Sonic WON'T last another 50 issues. So, what's the last word on "Endgame"? Well, a good writer should always be ready to admit it when someone else has said something far better than he/she ever could. So I'll let Ken Penders have the final say here (with an assist from Messers Kanterovich and Mawhinney). If you're reading this on my Sonic Website, you'll find it in the Archives section of the "Knothole Knews" where I've stored some of my past reviews. If you can't get there or it you prefer to deal with hard copy, just look in the second issue of the Knuckles miniseries "Rites of Passage", page 11,panel 8. RDB note: or click on http://www2.andrews.edu/~drazen/endgame.jpg It's what Archimedes says to Knuckles after the latter tried to make a meal of the former, and I agree :^| #51 [Oct 1997] NOTE: If you're new to this group, I'd better warn you that this review WILL contain spoilers. Of course if you're a REAL newbie, you won't know what a "spoiler" is, anyway, so never mind... Spaz/Harvo cover: A little cluttered but a good design. Too bad someone seems to have gotten training in Adobe Photoshop 4.0 or some such program recently and felt compelled to use all the new tricks they're learning. The transparent confetti is a nice touch but there's also a little too much use of the gradient tool resulting in blurriness in the foreground and in Tails' party favor or spinner or whatever. Dulcy suffered from the same problem on the cover of #49; at the time, I thought I just needed new glasses. And this must have been laid out by a computer as well because the stair stepping around Amy Rose's eyes is REALLY noticeable. As depressing as the subject matter of the cover of #47 was, at least the lines were clean. Speaking of depressing, Rotor appears to be contemplating his impending demotion along with that of the rest of the secondary characters. Oh well, it's also his party and he'll cry if he wants to. That's more emotion than Sonic got to show through the whole of "Endgame", but never mind. And to all those who scoured the preview media and could have sworn that was Hershey on the cover...GOTCHA! Paul Castiglia admitted that they couldn't show the final cover for #51 while the "Endgame" arc was still running, so in order to keep the ending under wraps they submitted a dummy cover. And if you believed it you now know WHY it's called a "dummy cover"...dummy! But Hershey DID make the front cover after all...the INSIDE front cover. Paid for the whole thing! At this rate, expect the next new regular character to be named "Quaker." Splash page: remember the good old days when you could actually SEE the splash pages? And you didn't have to fight your way through a jungle of text? Remember when they helped set the mood for the story (the most sublime example being the Spaz splash page in #43), rather than being mere wallpaper for someone's text? Do you remember? Because if you don't, they're just going to keep on doing things like this at Archie and it's really starting to get annoying! "Reality Bytes" Ordinarily, this is where the credits would appear. However, that minor detail seems to have gotten past someone; there is NO sign ANYWHERE of who is responsible for this story. The Sam Maxwell art style is unmistakable, but the writer prefers to remain unknown (or simply blameless). Was the Archie crew just so exhausted from working on "Endgame" that they forgot? Or perhaps it's like the scene in "Continental Divide" where two of Chicago's finest make sure they're not wearing their badges before they carry out an alderman's orders and start pounding on the character played by John Belushi. No badges, no badge numbers, no way of knowing who did the deed. RDB note: before everybody replies with the author, see Dan's last line below... Well, I've done so much gabbing it looks like the party's already winding down. That's the trouble with living in the year 3235: they've forgotten how to party like it's 1999. Actually, the core Freedom Fighters have stepped away from the festivities to bestow a special medal of some sort on Sonic. Sonic is awakened later in the evening by Sally, who speaks of some kind of secret mission. Turns out the secret is that Sally's overdosed on the eye liner and is suddenly sporting a set of red contact lenses. Oh, and she also set up a Com-bot ambush. Sonic dodges the weapons fire and heads back for Knothole, while Sally morphs into a REALLY ugly-looking bot. Someone better lend Sam some stills from "Sonic's Nightmare"; at least in THAT one the Sally bot looked decent. Tails suddenly arrives to airlift Sonic out of harm's way and to give him the old good news/bad news routine: the bad news is, "someone's taken over" for Robotnik and Sally was his first victim; the worst news is, we get subjected to a gratuitous Arnold impersonation from Tails (since we'll probably be up to our Maltese falcons in bogus Bogart impressions in next month's issue, consider this a warm-up exercise). An image of Uncle Chuck appears and disappears in front of Sonic, who then notices an approaching Buzzbomber and a Crab-whatever below (OK, so I don't know from the games; I'll admit it). That's the cue for Tails to come down with a case of red eye and to let his big bro down, literally! Sonic lands with a convincing THOOM that leaves an enormous crater and no sign of our hero. At least until we get to page 10 where we find Sonic burrowing away underground. He sees another manifestation of Uncle Chuck and reacts to it in the same way Dracula might react to a slice of garlic-crust pizza. Emerging near the "hot spring" he finds Bunnie, who's in a bad way: she appears to have blown a serious gasket, and she's even lost her accent. Nice design, very cute...until SHE starts in with the red eye thing. Let's see, Sally morphs, Sonic escapes; Tails morphs, Sonic escapes; Bunnie morphs...do I really have to finish the sentence? Even Sonic is getting bored by the repetition and starts yawning on the top of page 12. He comes across a power ring, but is unable to pull it out of the water. RDB note: that's what it looks like, but maybe he's just really bummed out by it not having any power... At least until Bunnie shows up, whereupon he uses it as a restraint and says: "You've got a ring for a straight-jacket! And I'm ghost!" Either I was on vacation when that phrase came into use, or else the writer and letterer suffered a communication breakdown. Sonic finally makes it to Knothole, but while in the home stretch he runs into the Uncle Chuck image who's now speaking in tongues. A transcript: "Hikaske on hukenox am yoque! Keneg nid trembo, Sonic!" Yeah, and a "Klaatu borada nikto" to you, too, Unc! RDB note: I was going to make a comment about the intro to ELO's Face the Music and point to a web page that un-back-masked it, but the link is obsolete... :^( (.wav available though if anybody wants it...) Let's take a break. Fan art: ALL RIGHT!!! Major kudos to Hysteria for showing these amateurs how it's done! I REALLY like the drawing: looks like a bunch of characters played by furries over on HumanMuck. I saw the drawing on the Scatterstar Galactica Productions Website [http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/7579/home-sgp.htm] and wondered how it'd look colored in. Archie saved me the trouble; thanks. And the "Find Your Name..." page. Notice how most of the names in the left-hand column display the ages, and most of the ages appear to belong in the 10-13 range; think Archie's trying to tell us something? Back to the action: Sonic arrives in Knothole, only to discover Robotnik (with Cluck, no less!) is part of the reception committee. "Whoops apocalypse"? OK, find the "bad pun" in the following dialogue: "Ah, Sonic! I've waited for this moment a long time! I finally have Knothole...and now I've captured you, as well, despite your valiant efforts! How does it feel to have egg on your face?" Yeah, I couldn't find it, either. Maybe he meant to say "egg IN your face". Anyway, Robotnik tries convincing Sonic to give himself up since "all of your friends have seen the light", and it's glowing a dull red. The roboticized Mobians start chanting "Join us!" like stoned teenagers in a bad hippie movie or something. Sonic struggles with the prospect of Robotnik "overtaking" Knothole. Hold on, I know that should be "taking over", but the word play's not over yet. As he struggles between the situation and remembering the good times, everyone starts derezzing as Robotnik yells "Hanend du nagun?!" which sounds like he just realized that he's forgotten to schedule time at the sauna. There's an extreme close-up of Sonic's baby browns and... We're back in Sonic's bedroom where it appears that Uncle Chuck is trying to jump-start his nephew's brain. Uncle Chuck is still suffering from dyslexia for he says "If you had said 'nightmare' you'd had been [instead of "you'd have been"] closer to the truth." He then explains that Sonic's medal "was booby- trapped with an artificial virus that threw you into a virtual- reality nightmare..." Which makes no sense at all if you know anything about computer viruses, REAL viruses, virtual reality, artificial intelligence, or dreaming, but it probably SOUNDS convincing if you're between the ages of 10 and 13. Sonic sums up the situation by saying: "What a kick in the pants that would be if Robotnik had scored from beyond the grave." Hey, Sonic, let's leave Robotnik's wardrobe AND his love life out of this, 'kay? But Uncle Chuck maintains that Robotnik "had nothing to do this!" Well, that's a cheap, ambiguous ending to this gratuitous little story. All that running around and we wind up with the Old Dream Ending -- the hack writer's best friend. No wonder the author insisted on anonymity! Maxwell's art is as uneven as ever, especially when drawing roboticized Mobians. Instead of looking menacing, they just look seedy. But that's hardly the most telling aspect of this story. I don't know if we've ever been treated to a view of Sonic's bedroom before, but I consider the race car bed to be on a par with the line about "loose continuity" on the Sonic-Grams page in #49: a small detail that gives the game away -- in this case, an indicator of which direction the comic is headed. One of the earliest questions I had to deal with when I began working on the Sonic FAQ File all those years ago was: "What are the ages of the characters?" Despite conflicting versions in the comics and the SatAM cartoon, Sonic's age was usually pegged at 15 in the comics and 16 in the cartoon. OK, we're safely talking mid-teens here, early high school. So let me ask you: What self-respecting high school-age guy would STILL BE SLEEPING IN A RACE CAR BED? Back in my high school, any kid in such a situation would have been pantsed [wedgied?] by the Auto Shop punks and thrown into the girls' locker room on a regular basis. We're not exactly talking "role model behavior" here. Unless you DO still sleep in a race car bed, in which case you're more likely to be a pre-teen than a teen. THAT is where Sonic appears to be heading. If you want to talk video games, let's talk "Space Ace", because it looks like Sonic is getting dosed with the Infanto Ray! It may be too soon to tell; SONIC: BRAVE NEW WORLD will be a better indicator. But it's beginning to appear that in the aftermath of the "Endgame" incident, Archie has decided to adjust their publishing to match their demographics. Ken Penders (in a post he sent out before leaving for the San Diego Comic Con) left the impression that there was pretty much a balance in fan reaction of those who didn't want Sally to die and those who wanted Sally out of the picture (presumably so she wouldn't infect Sonic with cooties). So with Solomon-like wisdom the honchos at Archie have decided to cut the baby in half: Sonic seems destined to regress into a blue Tom Sawyer while Knuckles is busy with weightier matters (and if you've let your mind wander while meditating on the splash page for Knuckles #5 you get an idea of HOW weighty things could get!). Speaking of Knuckles, Archie devoted FOUR FULL PAGES of this issue to advertisements for its different publications and other stuff -- everything from Archie digests to "romance novels" to fanny packs. And yet NOWHERE in ANY of the SIX DIFFERENT advertisements is there ANYTHING about subscribing to Knuckles! It's as if the title stopped with the "Dark Legion" miniseries. This is ridiculous! If I hadn't sent an e-mail to Paul Castiglia I'd still be waiting for an announcement that the "Lost Paradise" miniseries is finally available. As it is, NOW I'm simply waiting for the "Lost Paradise" miniseries to get here one issue at a time. Sonic-Grams: But they DO show a thumb-nail of the cover of Knuckles #6, as well as thumb-nails for "Brave New World" and Sonic #52. BTW, the picture of the cover of #52 as shown in the back of Knuckles #5 (which I browsed in a local store) is WAY better -- a black-and-white drawing of Sonic. Looks much more "film noir." If nothing else, I plan to scan it in at some point and add it to my Website, next to the link to my Sonic parody story, "My Quills Are Quick." But if the story in #52 is based in part on "Casablanca", why is Sonic dressed like Bogie in "The Maltese Falcon" or "The Big Sleep"? The only time Bogart wore the trenchcoat in "Casablanca" was when he was delivering those great lines to Ingrid Bergman on the tarmac: "If you're not on that plane...you'll regret it; maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon and for the rest of your life...We'll always have Paris...Where I'm going you can't follow, what I have to do you can't be any part of...I'm no good at being noble, but it doesn't take much to see that the problems of three little people don't amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world...Here's lookin' at you, kid." Sorry, got carried away there, but dang, that's WRITING!!! Somehow, it means more than having a 4-year-old write: "Dear Sonic, you are cool!" But we're slowly taking over, cyberfans! Green Gibbon gets his letter printed (paying homage to Yuji Naka), while Juan Lara gets credit for guessing the Disney ending. In any event, they write better than Freddy: "Tons of stuff is happening...A climaxing continuation...[hey, HEY!, I thought this was turning into a KIDS comic!]...he steps into a zone that must be seen for yourself...." I'll admit I've written lines like that, but it was usually 4:00 in the morning on a day that a term paper was due. Keneg nid trembo, Fred. (BTW, according to the PR blurb for #51 in Knuckles #5, Karl Bollers was the writer of record for "Reality Bytes."). Knuckles #4 [Aug 1997] Cover Art: Spaziante/Penders triptych. Nice if you're into an Impressionist phase, but doesn't give a clue as to what's inside. With any luck they'll drop the triptych motif next year when Knuckles becomes a proper monthly. OK, HERE'S an innovation worth mentioning: the Spaz/Harvo "cameo" (for lack of a better term -- if there's a real name for it, I await enlightenment) on page...well, it's two pages before Page 1 so that means that this is page I and that the splash page is page ii. Good design, nice composition, very dynamic in its way. Just about makes up for... The splash page. Interesting...what I could see of it! Don't get me started. "Lost Paradise: Part 1: The Phantom City" "Ken Penders: Writers" -- OK, we now know that human cloning IS possible! Manny Galan: Penciler; Andrew Pepoy: Inker. Kids, don't try this at home: Vector is under water listening to the soundtrack of "The Little Mermaid" on his WalkCroc and carrying his shoes on his belt, apparently because he likes the idea of swimming with dead weight, and the better to guarantee a case of trench foot when he puts them back on. RDB note: better that than the jock itch from doing the same thing with underwear :^) Of course, he's also wearing white gloves. Proof once again that even furries who don't HAVE fur are Not Clear On The Concept of clothing. However, he interrupts his Esther Williams impersonation after he notices a suspicious shadow along the riverbank. After a nice full face shot of Vector looking out from the water, he leaps out of the river (having put his shoes back on at some point) and lunges at what appears to be a member of the Dark Legion left over from the last miniseries. Vector's jive talkin' motivates the Legionnaire who softens up Vector quite handily, but before he can be turned into a wallet the stranger indicates that someone else on the island has got a date with a taser. Hurrying past a Captain Crunch ad, we find Knuckles "in pursuit of knowledge and enlightenment." Here's some enlightenment for you, Knuckles: it's pronounced "Om!" Archimedes breaks off his criticism of Knuckles' meditation technique to point out the would-be assailant. Knuckles and the assailant mix it up for two pages until we discover that he's been fighting with...THE ECHIDNA VERSION OF ELIZABETH TAYLOR! I guess it's those violet eyes. Well, it had to happen at some point. The Knuckles saga has been pretty stag up until now, what with all the male bonding going on with Knux and the Chaotix. We finally get to see some equal opportunity slugging, because the first thing she does on page 8 is sucker punch Knuckles and reach for the taser. No doubt about it, what we have here is a "meet cute." A "meet cute" is Hollywood shorthand for a boy-meets-girl set-up that telegraphs the message that however inauspicious their meeting, these two will end up falling in love with each other by the end of the picture. The key to a good "meet cute" is disaster: the worse things get for the couple, the more likely they'll be to fall into each other's arms at some point. The scene in the beginning of "101 Dalmatians" involving Pongo's master and Perdita's mistress in the park is classic "meet cute" material. RDB note: so is Danny's and Sawyer's interaction at the beginning of Cats Don't Dance :^) So where were we? She punches him out, then gets her mitten singed by Archy; oh yeah, THESE kids have got off on the right foot! As Knuckles removes the rather prosaic 1.5 volt batteries from the taser, Julie-Su (the new kid on the block) provides a brief exposition: seems it was Kragok the Marginally Pronounceable who activated the self-destruct at the end of the last miniseries. She goes on to say that she noticed Knuckles during her escape and despite wanting to rejoin the Legion "it's been like someone forcing their will over mine! I HAD to find you!" Archy looks as if he's hearing "Lohengrin" in the background RDB note: ??? Another Wagnerian Ring reference? (and NOT liking the sound of it!), but then the Chaotix show up and while Vector starts harassing Julie-Su the others report seismic activity over by the Marble Zone. This conversation is being observed by Knuckles' dad, who appears to be just as pessimistic as Archy about his son's new playmate. Fan Art: There's something about Jessalyn Alany's style that I really like, even if the gesture is weird. Cristal Ramanaasras' drawing of Might's hands, OTOH, makes him look positively arthritic. And Knuckles get his very own "Do Untold Damage To Your Eyesight Page." Back in Haven, Dad continues to utter dire prophecies about this latest plot twist while the two young echidnas continue to bicker. Yet ANOTHER echidna in Haven (with brown dreads and wearing a monocle) seems to share the opinion of Knuckles' dad, whom he addresses as "Locke." And none too soon; I was REALLY getting tired of typing "Knuckles' dad" all the time. Locke also mentions that he "wasn't prepared...for Lara-Le, either," so there's another name to keep on file. After several hours of inspecting the Zone Knuckles and Julie-Su are on the verge of going for each other's throats again when the next tremor comes along. It causes an apparition to appear; it isn't the Emerald City, but it's close. And now "Sir" (Mr. Monocle) AND Archy are concerned about their "careful planning" going "up in smoke" but Locke takes a wait-and-see approach as the two echidnas and Archy head for the city and soon find themselves up to their foreheads in echidnas. Seems they've somehow gotten back to Echidnaopolis, Knuckles' old home town. Nobody seems to be paying them any attention, however; well, ALMOST nobody, for Knuckles is recognized by a female echidna with green eyes and beribboned dreads who says: "I can't believe that a son wouldn't recognize his own mother." Too bad Vector isn't here to witness this reunion; the situation cries out to have him say to Knuckles: "Yo' mama!" At which point Knuckles would have given him a well- deserved punch in the mouth. As for Archimedes, he's thinking, "Oh yeah, THIS day just keeps getting better and better!" What kind of son wouldn't recognize his own mother? How about one who's spent most of his life living with only his father, learning how to be something called a Guardian? Apparently, the Guardian apprenticeship rules didn't allow for regular visitations. Either that, or Locke's custody arrangement was pretty darn favorable. Now is as good a time as any to unwrap a MAJOR SPOILER I've been carrying around since late March, especially since it's already been spilled on Ron Bauerle's list. If you haven't got the stomach for that sort of thing, skip to the next paragraph. It appears Locke's living in Haven isn't just one of the more dubious perks of being a Guardian. At the Motor City Comic Con, Ken Penders told me that one of the things we'll be learning about Knuckles is that he comes from a broken home. That's right: his parents are divorced. Splitsville. The Big D. The subject of I don't know how many country-western tunes. Oddly enough, this pretty much serves the same function as Sonic's race car bed in "Reality Bytes" [#51]: audience identification. Ken said that a lot of the mail that he's gotten indicate that the readers of the comics (or a notable number thereof) come from single-parent households -- make of THAT what you will. RDB note: they have more time to read comic books? :^| Come to think of it, MY folks split back in 1968 when I was in high school. Oh, there's LOTS more stuff we'll be learning about Knuckles, but it can wait. As for Mrs. Locke (who may or may not be the "Lara-Le" of whom Locke spoke back on page 12), she and Echidnaopolis vanish again. The reproachful look on her face as she vanishes communicates the message: "You couldn't pick up a phone once in a while?" Knuckles confronts Archy with the belief that the little fire breather knows more than he's telling; Archy's response is basically a variation on Jack Nicholson's "You can't handle the truth!" from "A Few Good Men." Yet ANOTHER quake comes along, this one serious enough to cause a major rift which would have spelled doom for Knuckles if Julie-Su hadn't saved his skin by grabbing his ankle. So she starts by threatening his life, then goes on to save it; yep, we'll be going to a wedding at SOME point! Great dialogue, BTW: JULIE-SU: Is he [Knuckles] always like this? ARCHIMEDES: He's actually gotten better! Think I'll work that into a .sig one of these days. RDB note: you already did :^) The city reappears and the NEXT tremor rolls into the station and it's deja vu all over again. They escape from the quake by running back into the city only to discover everyone running around in a panic. One echidna helpfully tells them that it's Judgment Day. Knuckles doesn't want to discuss eschatology and suggests that they look up his mom. Sure, NOW you think of your mother! However, they first come across a statue of an echidna who appears to be dressed like Buck Rogers and has a facial expression that tells me he was full of himself. This dude is identified by a plaque: "In Gratitude to our Guardian HAWKING Creator of the Hyper Zone Projector -- Our Civilization Endures Because of Him." RDB note: hopefully I'll remember this when I send out your review of #5... While Knuckles theorizes that this has something to do with the plot, our three friends find themselves facing what I guess is supposed to be an echidna police squad. The leader of the group is wearing a hat that looks like it used to belong to Ranger Smith in the old Yogi Bear cartoons. They appear to belong to something called the EST, and I don't think it stands for "Echidnaopolis Softball Team". To be continued. Now THIS is more like it! So far Ken's been successfully hitting us with some major new characters and plot developments while managing to keep the story moving. The characterizations are perfect. At first I was put off by the reception Knuckles gave his mom, but I suppose it would make sense if he'd never really bonded with her. He could have looked a little more shocked throughout, though. Lara-Le (I GUESS that's the name of Knuckles' mom) still needs to have her character fleshed out a bit, but Julie-Su is a revelation: her personality has been nailed down right out of the box. I could sense a major chip on her shoulder from the moment she first flashed those violet eyes (note to the colorists at Archie Comics: PLEASE don't screw around with those eyes!). She's more than some kind of generic tomboy echidna and WAY more than a Sally knock-off. Sally carries herself with a certain maturity that's the result of both her innate personality and a knowledge of her station in life. Julie-Su, OTOH, is positively volcanic -- I got the sense that she's toting around a LOT more anger than she's showing. She doesn't just have an attitude; this has the potential for expanding into a full-blown case of PASSION!! Still, it's kind of funny: for the longest time, Ken has had to contend with the fact that Princess Sally was a strong female character who was more complex than Sonic the Hedgehog (who was supposed to be the star of his comic). So what happens when he moves over to doing Knuckles comics? He creates ANOTHER strong female character whose personality threatens to outstrip that of the male lead. On an Irony scale of 1 to 10 that comes pretty darn close to an 11. I am DEFINITELY going to work Julie-Su into my fanfic at some point, the character is THAT good! Hats off to you, Ken. The Letters Page In Search Of A New Name: Contest deadline is July 31, and I get my copy in the mail on July 29. The story of my life. The thumbnail covers for Sonic #50 and Knuckles #5 simply DON'T do the real things justice. And thanks to some VERY substantive Q&A from the fans we learn that: - The white ring around Knuckles' neck is [a] hereditary trait, as is the office of Guardian. - Knuckles WAS prohibited from having contact with outsiders, thus his meeting with the young Sally (remembered in flashback in "Black and Blue and Red All Over", Sonic #44) was technically a violation -- looks like I guessed that one right in my review! - Menniker "is my great-uncle fifteen generations removed." Have I simply gotten paranoid about the hints and clues Ken is supposed to be dropping in his stories, or does the use of "is" instead of "was" have some significance? RDB note: that came up on the genealogy groups recently - should we say (the late) John Doe "was" my great-grandfather, or "is"? There really wasn't a consensus either way... I've received a couple of e-mails lately as much as accusing me of hating the Sonic and Knuckles comics -- of engaging in criticizing for criticizing's sake. I haven't wanted the moon as far as the quality of Sonic comics is concerned; I only want to see them approaching THIS level of artistic and narrative achievement. Is that too much to ask? Knuckles #5 [Sep 1997] Cover art: continued from last issue. This one actually has some connection to the story inside. I could say something about the dingoes depicted on the front cover but I understand there are kids lurking nearby. Yet ANOTHER great cameo (or whatever) from Spaz/Harvo, though Julie-Su's boots look a bit overdrawn. The figures of the dingo and of Lara-Le are the most impressive due to their being lit from below, and there's something about Lara-Le's haunted expression that I find unusually compelling. RDB note: the anime eyes might have something to do with it... The splash page. OK, you can look at it one of two ways: either the drawing (which I think is too nice to be used as wallpaper) is a contrast of Knuckles As Loner in the foreground and when he was actually part of a real family in the background; or else there's a Knuckles sibling that Ken's going to spring on us at some point. And if that sib happens to have violet eyes, then maybe that music Archy was hearing in the last issue wasn't "Lohengrin" so much as that banjo music from "Deliverance." If you don't get my meaning, e-mail me; like I said, there ARE children about. RDB note: I saw "Deliverance" albeit 25+ years ago when I was a kid, but I don't remember it dealing with _that_... Page 1: I could have done without the Lucas reference; as an attempt at humor it was too (forgive the pun) Forced. But I LOVE the dialogue between Locke and...OK, it isn't "Sir" from the last issue because he was brown and not red. All the same, the dialogue itself is great stuff. If you tighten it up a little: "I know what you're thinking." "How?" "I know you." "Oh." "I also know her." "What's SHE thinking?" "How would I know?" It reads like great Absurdist drama, along the lines of Samuel Beckett's "Waiting for Godot" or (more specifically) Tom Stoppard's "Rosenkrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead." But let's get down to business: "Lost Paradise: Part 2: Fallout" Writer: Ken Penders; Penciler: Manny Galan, Inker: Andrew Pepoy Ranger Smith, whose real name is "Constable Remington", has just busted Knuckles, Archimedes, and Julie-Su. Still, he recognized Knuckles as being a Guardian (must've read the Letters page in the last issue), and uses the old trap door bit to separate the boys from the girl. Knuckles and Archy end up in what looks like someone's apartment, but before we're introduced... Remember the appearing and disappearing of Echidnaopolis in the last issue? I didn't think that was all that impressive, to be honest with you. But the second and third panels on page 6 MORE than make up for it! We get to see two separate worlds (one populated by echidnas, the other by rather military-looking dingoes) phase-shift across each other's paths. The inhabitants of both worlds are freaked out. One dingo reports this turn of events to a General Stryker, who's so buff that he reminds me (a little too much) of Ahnold the Alsatian from Tiny Toons. He apparently also has the same barber as Beavis and Butt-head's gym teacher, Mr. Buzzcut. [Footnote: this is apparently the character who was originally named "General Von Speer" until Sega put their corporate foot down and demanded a name change, as also reported by Ken Penders at the Motor City Comic Con]. Just as well; if he'd been given a Teutonic name, the temptation to think of him as sounding like Ahnold would be even greater. Back underground, Knuckles is introduced to his host: a VERY old Guardian, specifically "your great-grandfather seven generations removed." By skipping ahead a few pages we deduce that this is none other than Hawking! Only now, as befits his namesake, he's confined to a wheelchair. The years (and apparently there have been a LOT of them!) have not been kind. He has Knuckles start playing a set of video discs that show his exploits during his "tenure as Guardian over 200 years ago." RDB note: and without the cheesy grin that his statue from #4 has... We see him in pursuit of dingoes who have stolen some military hardware. We also learn that, according to the Geezer Guardian, the dingoes have always been warlike and have always stolen echidna technology, including... OK, the LAST time I saw missiles like that was in the atrocious "Mecha Madness" story. Mike Gallagher displayed NO credibility when it came to discussing nuclear weaponry. Here's hoping Ken can learn from the past. Speaking of the past, Hawking (who is now wearing that snazzy hat worn by Knuckles in the Sonic _anime_) is shown giving instructions of some kind WRT the missiles to yet ANOTHER Guardian, this one wearing a dreadlock ring with the letter "M" on it. It's yet another tease as we follow Hawking into one of the underground tech storage vaults to fetch "perhaps the only possible solution" to their crisis: a remote control unit for an RC car? Ad on the facing page for: the ill-fated "Endgame" series, including #50 which they insist on calling a "commemorative issue." Technically, something "commemorative" serves as a reminder of someone or something, or else honors someone's death. The use of the word might have made sense if Sally really DID kick it in the course of the story arc; as it stands, and given the use of a certain character's silhouette in the "Endgame" logo, it appears that the issue is intended to be a tribute to Dr. Robotnik. Any hope on my part that we'll ever see the "director's cut" of #50 has pretty much dimmed; I just want to forget that that whole sorry arc ever happened! Fan Art: Joshua Bails of "Waren", Michigan (wonder if that's anywhere near "Warren", Michigan?) draws a "Knuckles" attacking... either it's a pirate or somebody's maiden aunt. And the Small Names In No Particular Order Page: note to the parents of "Joel A Punch Is Worth A Thousand Words' Blackwood": get therapy. Back to the flashback as Hawking uses the remote control to activate some kind of countermeasure against the incoming missiles. The sequence is given supposed weight by Hawking's narration: "I was breaking the most solemn vow a Guardian swears before all else! For the first time I wondered which mattered more--my people--or my conscience!" Gee, if I'm looking at the prospect of my fellow echidnas being turned into extra crispy nuggets because one of my ancestors had a problem with technology, and if I DON'T use that technology a huge chunk of the population I'm supposed to be guarding is going to buy the harp farm, I'd call that decision a no-brainer! Basically, what Hawking did was something that any first year cadet at Starfleet Academy would have done: "Raise shields!" The "energy shields" managed to save Echidnaopolis but of course the rest of the island was in jeopardy from the radioactive debris. So, having bought some time and after going through Dimitri/Enerjak's papers (which apparently included a copy of Sonic #50), Hawking came up with the Hyper Zone Projector which transported Echidnaopolis to another zone. Three hours, seventeen minutes, forty-two seconds into the future, perhaps. The Dingo Empire (or whatever they called it) was similarly treated but sent to a different time zone. This doesn't tie everything up in a neat package -- at that age, I guess Hawking is suffering from an advanced case of loose continuity. He then shows Knuckles a statue of the Floating Island as supported by Edmund and another echidna whose name is "conveniently" out of the frame. Hawking tells Knuckles that it symbolizes both his heritage and responsibility. Knuckles has "more questions than ever before", and he ain't the only one. But in the true spirit of dysfunctional families, Hawking tells Knuckles to "shut up and listen." At least he TRIES to, until a timely tremor cuts him off in mid-sentence. It's Julie-Su, ready to blow her top because she hasn't put in an appearance since page 4. Constable Remington decides that because she was keeping company with Knuckles at the time they were arrested she is automatically a "representative" of the Guardian and therefore qualified to handle a hostage crisis. That strikes me as a little like saying that by virtue of genetics my twin brother and I are qualified to switch jobs, but at least it keeps her involved in the plot. Somehow, Remington's lumping the dingoes in with what he tells Julie-Su are "your kind" really makes me question his judgment. Anyway, cut back to Knuckles who watches Hawking levitate himself back into his wheelchair. OK, so maybe "confined" isn't the best word. Anyway, Knuckles and Archy now see that dingoes are holding his mom, Lara-Le, hostage. Also involved, according to Remington, is "her consort." Lighten up, Remington, you can say "boyfriend." Knuckles, I'm sure, could come up with an alternative label. OK, I can be pretty slow on the uptake sometimes -- hey, I AM 45 years old! -- but it's beginning to look to me as if "Guardian" can also be pronounced "Superhero." In the discs we see Hawking flying through the air, wearing Captain Marvel gloves, and only now is it all beginning to fall into place: the powers, the solitude, Hawking's longevity, the deference shown by Remington. I'm beginning to see where this is going and, frankly, I've got mixed emotions about it. Earlier in the story Knuckles had described himself as "just an ordinary Joe doing his job" and that was pretty much the way I'd thought of him as well. I'd thought nothing unusual about Knuckles' flying/gliding/whatever. Then again, I'd thought nothing unusual about Sonic's speed or Tails' ability to fly. Seemed to make sense in the context of Mobius. That's one of the reasons I disliked "Bedtime Tails" (Sonic #38); it seemed as if Mike Kanterovich and Ken Penders were tinkering with a crossover between a furry book and a muscle-and-spandex book without either trying for a full-blown parody of the superhero genre or treating the characters as if they actually WERE superheroes. And given the rather depressing crop of superheroes nowadays (Spawn, the Maxx), the genre NEEDS to take itself less seriously! Unfortunately, muscle-and-spandex are the coin of the realm for comic books, and it looks like the Knuckles story is going to be no exception. Poor Knuckles isn't about to get buff (we now have Gen. Stryker for that), and I hope he doesn't decide to go with a dorkey costume. Unfortunately, he's showing some of the same dysfunctional characteristics as the Dark Knight model of Batman. Let's see what we have so far: he's been raised in isolation, apart from anything resembling a family, so it's no wonder he didn't exactly relate well to his own mother in the last issue -- he probably never really bonded with her, and after spending so much time with just his dad (who is, in effect, in hiding from his own son) his social skills are shot. It also probably goes a long way toward explaining why Locke's marriage to Lara-Le went sour. Since the hidden figure on page 1 professed not to understand "Jenna" or Lara-Le (whom he claims to know nevertheless), I get the sense that perhaps MOST Guardians who grew up in this system had such poor social skills that troubled relationships were the rule rather than the exception. And in claiming to "know" and "not understand" at the same time, it's an indication of just how blind to the problem the Guardians are! In addition, Knuckles has also inherited a rigid code of behavior that is NOT to be questioned; it almost prevented him from striking up a friendship with Princess Sally in "Black And Blue And Red All Over" (Sonic #44). He's only gradually getting to know his relatives whose one common denominator seems to be a well-developed knack for keeping secrets from each other and especially from Knuckles. Even the dialogues between Guardians other than Knuckles (Locke and "Sir", for instance) leave too much unsaid and convey a sense that these are NOT happy campers; Ken has yet to portray ONE Guardian who demonstrates anything resembling peace of mind. Any way you slice it, this whole Guardian system leaves a lot to be desired psychologically. Maybe it's my middle-age disillusionment with the IDEA of superheroism coming through. Still, I'm beginning to understand why the office of Guardian is hereditary: no echidna in his/her right mind would WANT the job. In the words of John Lennon, "I wouldn't do it for a giggle." Postcards For The Time Being Until We Pick A New Name: Knuckles #6, Sonic #51, and a VERY NICE film noir cover of Sonic #52. The INSIDES should only be so impressive. And letters: leave it to a Californian to ask Knuckles if he has "a sensitive side"; the rather telling reply, "I'd like to think so but I'd never admit it." Let's see: psychologists recognize that dysfunctional families tend to live by three hard and fast rules: Don't Talk; Don't Trust; Don't Feel. Knuckles has grown up apart from the society of which he's supposed to be a Guardian; the Guardians who are supposed to be initiating him into the office seem to have an attitude best summed up by Hawking's "Shut up and listen" so it seems that they don't even trust the kid; and he's not even honest about his own feelings. John Bradshaw, call your office. * NOTES FROM THE NET "Notes From the Net" made its debut in mid-1996. Archie Comics has an e-mail address you can use to send your questions and comments. Use the address SonicNotes@aol.com for both the Sonic and Knuckles comics. COMIC PUBLISHERS: For subscriptions and back issues--US & Canada: Archie Comics 325 Fayette Avenue Mamaroneck, NY 10543 (914) 381-5155. $15.00/year US monthly $18.00/year CAN monthly For subscriptions and back issues--United Kingdom (Fleetway Editions comics): Sonic The Comic Subscription Dept. OR Back Issue Zone Aim Ltd. P.O. Box 10 Pallion Industrial Estate Sunderland, SR4 6SN UNITED KINGDOM 01144-91-5102290 L28.60 (=28 pounds, 60 pence)/year UK fortnightly L45.00/year Europe fortnightly L47.00/year Overseas surface mail fortnightly L55.00/year Overseas airmail fortnightly C. OTHER SOURCES Michael Teitelbaum, _Sonic the Hedgehog_ (c)1993; _Sonic the Hedgehog: Robotnik's Revenge_ (c)1994; _Sonic the Hedgehog: Fortress of Fear_ (c)1994; _Sonic the Hedgehog: Friend or Foe?_ (c)1995: Mahwah, New Jersey: Troll Associates. _Sonic the Hedgehog_ synopsis: Note: Any resemblance between this book and the original comics miniseries shouldn't be surprising; what IS surprising is how far from the TV series this is. Herewith, the "Cliff's Notes" description: Ch.1: At the beginning, Sonic is 7, Robotnik is 15, and both are staying with Uncle Chuck (you get some idea of how non-canonical this is going to get!). While Robotnik is only interested in gadgets, Sonic is only interested in running fast. While Uncle Chuck works on perfecting a power ring, Robotnik cannibalizes parts from Uncle Chuck's old tractor for a robot. When Uncle Chuck starts up the tractor, it goes out of control and heads for Robotnik. Ch. 2: Sonic interrupts a game of one-against-nine baseball to move the tractor which has pinned Robotnik and Uncle Chuck. He's able to move it with the power ring and he takes both Robotnik and Uncle Chuck to the hospital. Ch. 3: After being released from the hospital, Uncle Chuck and Robotnik return home. Robotnik's robot confesses to Uncle Chuck that he was put together with the stolen tractor parts, and Robotnik is grounded. Robotnik cobbles together another robot from Uncle Chuck's major appliances; it grabs Uncle Chuck but Sonic defeats it by wrapping it up in a garden hose. Robotnik leaves. Ch. 4: "Eight years passed." Sonic, 15, has a pet dog, Muttski, and works as a delivery hedgehog for his Uncle Chuck's chili dog stand. Sonic tests his new sneakers (designed by Uncle Chuck) while filling a large order, but in his absence Robotnik returns and arrests "Uncle Chuck" and his robots trash the stand. Ch. 5: Sonic delivers the chili dogs to an old factory, walking into a trap. He escapes and returns to what's left of the stand. He destroys a couple of robots who try to capture him and learns that Robotnik is responsible. He heads off for Robotnik's factory. Ch. 6: Stopping in the forest just outside the factory he encounters "a cute little chipmunk girl": Princess Sally Acorn. She shows Sonic a short-cut to the "Ro-Bo-Machine." Ch. 7: Reaching the fence around the factory, Sonic sees that Uncle Chuck has already been roboticized. Sally tries to stop him, but Sonic goes over the fence. Ch. 8: Sonic goes into Sonic Spin and takes out the SWATbots. With Sally's help, they get Uncle Chuck and Muttski and head for the Great Forest. Ch. 9: Sally leads them to "Knothole Village" which is "under the forest floor." (cf. Sonic #0). Sonic uses a power ring to restore Uncle Chuck and Muttski. None of the other Freedom Fighters are introduced. _Sonic the Hedgehog: Robotnik's Revenge_ PLOT SYNOPSIS: Ch. 1: Snively interrups Robotnik while he's in the middle of roboticizing Mobians to report that Sonic has joined Sally's cadre of freedom fighters. Robotnik comes up with a plan (via Snively) to capture "one of the weaker freedom fighters" to lure Sonic into a trap. Ch. 2: Nothing much happens as characters are introduced as Sally tries to get a meeting off the ground. A deroboticized Uncle Chuck is part of the Knothole crowd. Ch. 3: Bunnie, Sally, Rotor and Antoine are on patrol when they are attacked by buzzbombers. In the process, Bunnie is captured. Ch. 4: While Bunnie is held prisoner, the Knothole gang comes up with a "Trojan Robotnik" ploy to get inside. Information about the inside of Robotnik's HQ is provided by Uncle Chuck with the aid of a power ring. Ch. 5: You think Robotnik was born yesterday? He lets the image of himself inside his HQ, and still manages to cage Sonic, Sally, Rotor, Antoine and Muttski. Ch. 6: Sonic goes into a spin and cuts the bars of the cage. Sonic takes out a number of bots, and the crew head for Bunnie's holding cell, only to find it empty. Ch. 7: With Muttski tracking the scent, the freedom fighters reach the room where the roboticized is. Sonic has to get past some SWATbots to get inside, but the roboticization of Bunnie has already begun. Ch. 8: Sonic spins into the machinery, destroying it. They get the half-roboticized Bunnie and split. They reach a wall as Bunnie comes to. Angered by what's happened to her, she kicks a hole in the wall. Epilogue: Back at Knothole, Uncle Chuck can't undo what's been done to Bunnie. But she's still got her friends and her heart, so she accepts her new designation as Bunnie Rabbot. _Sonic the Hedgehog: Fortress of Fear_ PLOT SYNOPSIS: Ch. 1: Rotor is being held prisoner by Robotnik in the old royal fortress, which is now Robotnik's headquarters. He shares a cell with a woodchuck named Digger, who says he's from a Freedom Fighter group on the western edge of the Great Forest. Digger tells Rotor about the King's list of freedom fighters. Snively takes Digger away and tells Rotor that Robotnik's looking for the list as well. Ch. 2: Sonic & Bunnie arrive at Robotnik's fortress to bust Rotor out of his cell. Guided by a small transmitter in the lining of Rotor's cap, they locate the cell, take out the bots and "haul some serious haunch" back to Knothole. Ch. 3: Snively reports the escape of Rotor to an unconcerned Robotnik, who is preparing to rip the fortress apart to locate the list. Rotor tells the others about the list and Robotnik's search for it. Sally guesses that the list in question was one of "brave and true warriors" compiled by Sally's father when she was a girl. A box of her father's papers turns out to have a secret compartment which yields the following fragment: ...beside your bed safe and... ...tucked in tight... ...you cannot fall... Ch. 4: Sonic, Sally, Bunnie, Rotor and Antoine set out the following evening. Using a high-frequency generator, they scramble the circuits of the SWATbots at the front gate. Antoine suggests beginning the search with the safe in her father's bedroom. Ch. 5: While Robotnik leads a search of the main level, Snively detects the Freedom Fighters' entry into the fortress. Thinking to score points with Robotnik, Snively plans to capture them himself. The Freedom Fighters arrive at the bedroom, but find Snively and a platoon of SWATbots. Sonic and Bunnie take out the bots while Antoine trips up Snively before he can grab Sally. Unfortunately, they notice that the safe door is open and the safe is empty. Ch. 6: Thinking of the second and third lines of the fragment, Antoine suggests that it might be Sally's old crib--a bed from which one cannot fall. Sneaking to the nursery, they discover that Robotnik hasn't gotten there yet. Rotor tears the mattress apart but finds nothing. Snively arrives and locks the Freedom Fighters in the nursery. Ch. 7: While Snively goes off to find Robotnik, Rotor accidentally bumps into an old music box. Sally suddenly realizes that the fragment of "clues" is actually part of the lyrics of an old lullaby sung to the tune the music box is playing. The lyrics make mention of a clock, which is no longer in the room. Sally guesses that it was hidden in one of the towers. She also remembers a secret passageway from the nursery to the tower. Moving a book on a shelf, a panel slides back, revealing a staircase. Ch. 8: Ascending the staircase, they find the clock in a room filled with old furniture and such, but also find that the clock has been torn apart. Noticing that several pieces of SWATbot are lying about, Sonic and Bunnie get inside the metal parts and act as if the "bot" were escorting the others as prisoners. Robotnik's exultation at finding the list is interrupted when the bot and its "prisoners" arrive. Sonic grabs the list, lays out Robotnik, and the Freedom Fighters escape. _Sonic the Hedgehog: Friend or Foe?_ PLOT SUMMARY: [If you know the plot of the "Game Guy" episode [second season], you pretty much know the plot of this book, though there are several major differences.] Ch. 1: Sally has a nightmare wherein Robotnik displaces her father. Referring to the list that was captured in _Fortress of Fear_, and noting that its descriptions of locations are extremely general, she plans to begin searching in the Caverns in the Great Unknown. Ch. 2: Rotor tests a magnetic field generator, managing to snare Bunnie. While exploring the caverns, they use the generator to dislodge a boulder. Spooked by a swarm of bats, Antoine becomes lost in the cave. Ch. 3: Antoine is found by the bank of an underground river. Using an inflatable raft, they head down the river and are almost hurled over a waterfall. They bed down for the night but awaken in the morning to the sound of approaching SWATbots. Ch. 4: The SWATbots take no notice of the Knothole gang, concentrating on an escaping figure. Sonic helps out the escapee, who turns out to be Ari on his way to free other freedom fighters in his group being held by Robotnik. Ch. 5: Ari explains how his group, which originally numbered 20, has lived on the run. Sonic is all for helping him, but Sally doesn't trust him. When Sonic goes off alone with Ari, Rotor is able to unscramble the bots' orders: to pretend to pursue Ari in order to lure Sonic to a trap. Ch. 6: Sonic and Ari reach the fortress, but not before Sonic pulls Ari out of quicksand. Once inside, Ari lets Sonic get captured. Ch. 7: Sally, Antoine, Rotor and Bunnie are in pursuit of Sonic and Ari. Sonic is deposited into the large pinball game/arena, with the object of avoiding the energy vortex. Ari realizes that his comrades have been roboticized and he's been double-crossed. Ch. 8: The Knothole gang arrive at the fortress and manage to save Ari. He leads them to Sonic. In a major reversal of the TV plot, Ari manages to pull Sonic out of the vortex, then helps him escape the game. As the group approaches Knothole, Ari returns home on his own. OVERSEAS BOOKS: Martin Adams, _Sonic the Hedgehog and the Silicon Warriors_ (c)1993; _Sonic the Hedgehog in Castle Robotnik_ (c)1994; _Sonic the Hedgehog in the Fourth Dimension_ (c)1993; _Sonic the Hedgehog in Robotnik's Laboratory_ (c)1993: London: Virgin. Attention WEB-Slingers: The following individuals have set up Sonic the Hedgehog home pages on the World Wide Web. You can access them at: [Note: these addresses are current as of the date of this FAQ file edition; beyond that, I make no claims as to the accuracy of accessing these pages. Many WEB sites do have links to other Sonic pages so give 'em a shot] http://rat.org/sonic/ [The Sonic Resource Page] http://rat.org/pub/sonic/ [ftp site for Web users] rat.org [ftp site for non-Web users] http://www2.andrews.edu/~drazen/ http://www.grcom.com/sonic4/ http://rgfn.epcc.edu/users/ab360/tails.html http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/watts/andy/ http://www.franken.de/users/deco/index.html http://www.gl.umbc.edu/~cmugg1/sonic/sonic.html http://home.pacific.net.sg/~prower/ http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/4218/index.html