Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 77

Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 77
Publication Date: September 1999

By this point in the history of Archie’s “Sonic the Hedgehog” series, the comic was thoroughly serialized. Issue 77 follows up immediately where the last book left off. However, while the previous month’s offering was action-packed, September of 1999’s release is a more character focused story.

“Rebel Without a Pause” – another referential and punny Karl Bollers’ title – begins with the Freedom Fighters returning to Knothole Village. Except for Sonic and Sally. Tails, Bunnie, and Antoine fear the worst has happened. Luckily, Sonic and Sally escape a Shadow-Bot ambush with Dulcy’s help. Upon returning to Knothole, the Princess and the Hedgehog both have a more personal encounter with King Acorn.

I have two minds about the Freedom Fighters returning to Knothole. On one hand, it’s disappointing to see the series backslide after “Endgame’s” conclusion. Seeing Sonic and friends take back Mobotropolis after fighting for it for so many years was worthwhile. On the other hand, I’m a bit of a traditional when it comes to “Sonic.” Seeing the Freedom Fighters operating out of the forest, entering Knothole through a hidden slide, and converging inside grass huts hits a sweet spot for me. Yeah, they’re hiding from a mad dictator but there’s still something homey about being back in Knothole.

The action beats in “Rebel Without a Pause” are fairly minor. Sonic, Sally, and Mina (along with a furry patterned after “Tenchi Muyo’s” Aeka) travel the desert between Robotropolis and the Great Forest… Which is a thing I guess exist. Sonic and Sally share some cute dialogue, both showing that they care for the other, before the robots show up. Dulcy saving the day is only sort of a cheat. After all, we saw her fairly recently, back in 74. Mostly, I like that Karl Bollers is remembering that Dulcy is still around. It’s good to see the comic dipping into its extensive cast.

“Rebel Without a Pause” is a fairly brief story but it does feature one very satisfying moment. After Sonic and Sally return to Knothole, both are expecting a stern lecture from King Acorn. Instead, the King is just happy Sally is alive. When talking to Sonic, the King points out all the times the hedgehog has directly disobeyed his orders… And then congratulates him for getting the job done anyway. Even after being freed of Ixis Naugus’ negative influence, King Acorn has spent way too much time being a prick recently. To see him see past petty bullshit and actually appreciate the heroes for what they accomplish is way overdo. Sadly, the King’s characterization would continue to shift between these two extremes for quite some time.

“Rebel Without a Pause” is a pretty solid story. Except for its bizarre interlude, which is literally referred to as an “interlude.” Two whole pages are devoted to Robotnik continuing his quest for the location of Knothole Village, while still suffering from the virus Snively infected him with last time. Meanwhile, a one-page spread is devoted to a space ship flying towards Mobius. It’s been so long since I read this section of the comic’s history that I do not remember where this particular plot thread is headed. Even if I did, it still breaks up the flow of an otherwise decent story.

Even though the main storyline is featuring lots of change, Ken Penders is still finding time for his “Tales of the Great War” back-up feature. At night, Amy Rose and friends gather around a camp fire. Jules and Bernie regale them of a story from the Great War. This time, they talk about Bernie, Chuck, and Jules heading out on a secret mission. Jules is injured by an Overlander and his situation looks grim. That is until Uncle Chuck considering using a risky new technology to save his brother’s life.

In other words, this entire seven page story is devoted to foreshadowing Jules being robotocized. Which, you’ll notice, is something we all ready know about. Instead of using the “Tales of the Great War” stories to fill in Mobius’ distant past, Penders has reached the more recent past. We already know that Uncle Chuck invented the robotocizer, that it had the unforeseen side-effect of sapping people’s free will, that Julian “Soon To be Robotnik” Kintobor would use it as a tool of suppression. Penders is re-trending old ground.

He’s also gratuitously extending the page count. We get unneeded panels devoted to Bernie blasting an attacking Overlander or Rotor’s dad driving a weird vehicle through the forest. The last page shows Robotnik’s schemeing more and more to overthrow King Acorn, something that has been repeatedly foreshadowed. It’s all unneeded at this point. Exploring the origins of the war was interesting but now “Tales of the Great War” has seemingly outlived its usefulness.

James Fry’s pencils on the cover story are solid, though his overly anime-esque artwork will still take some getting use to. Chris Allan draws the back-up story. While his pencils are getting slightly better, he still draws the Mobians like “Tiny Toon Adventures” cast members. The back-up story is weak but the cover story is strong, making issue 77 worth reading. [7/10]