THE 2021 SONIC THE HEDGEHOG COMIC BEST/WORST LIST!

2021 was a year that definitely happen. I've got no pithy insights into that. I am, like everyone else, simply exhausted. But it was, in a strange way, a good year to be a "Sonic" fan. It was the 30th anniversary of the entire franchise and that brought with it a boatload of goodies. The pandemic delayed the new game and cartoon show but that didn't stop us — and the corporate overlords at Sega who feed us — from having fun.

And the comic kept on rolling along too, of course. This was IDW "Sonic's" fourth year in existence. Issue fifty is fast approaching. It's inevitable that a life long Archie "Sonic" like myself would still see IDW as standing in that monolith's shadow, But I think I officially stopped referring to this comic as "the new one" this year. IDW has successfully ingrained itself into the wider world of "Sonic" lore. We know this is the case because its characters have now been transformed into adorable plush toys and the introduction of new villains made "Sonic" Twitter loose its mind.

So let's look back on the Year That Was (at least, so far as the "Sonic" comic is concerned) one last time. In this retrospective, I will cover:

Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW): Issues 37-47

Sonic the Hedgehog: Imposter Syndrome: Issue 1

Sonic the Hedgehog 30th Anniversary Special

Sonic the Hedgehog: Free Comic Book Day 2021

BEST COVER STORY:

Ian Flynn, “Seasons of Chaos” (Sonic the Hedgehog 30th Anniversary Special)

I guess there's no way to know until the book has been running for many more years but, it certainly feels this way to me, that "Seasons of Chaos" is the first stone cold classic to come out of IDW "Sonic." Every single page of this story is delightful. We got the reintroductions of beloved characters like Nack, Mighty, Bark and Bean. The Hard Boiled Heavies were given a decent role in the story. The interaction between Sonic, his friends and enemies, was often hilarious. Yet the stakes weren't sacrificed for the sake of comedy. Building the story around the four seasons insured the visuals were lively and colorful. Why can't the book be this good all the time?

WORST COVER STORY:

Ian Flynn, “Zeti Hunt: Part 1” (Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW): Issue 41)

The first part of "Zeti Hunt," meanwhile, represents Ian Flynn's writing at its most mechanical. Issue 41 was devoted to passionlessly setting up the rest of the arc. The threat is introduced, in the form of the revenge hungry Zavok. There's several pages of chaos, as the Zetis wreck towns in the most boring and conflict-free manner possible. The heroes trade exposition about what to do with this and then the issue ends. It was the definition of the book "going through the motions."

BEST BACK STORY:

The McElroy Brothers, “Sonic Learns to Drive” (Sonic the Hedgehog 30th Anniversary Special)

It wasn't just the cover story in the 30th Anniversary Special that was a complete delight. The back-up stories were really good too and "Sonic Learns to Drive" was the best. As you'd expect from professional comedians like the McElroy Brothers, the story is full of hilarious jokes. Every single panel has a laugh in it, as Sonic and Kip the Capybara trade specific, comically infused dialogue. The idea of dropping Sonic in a car and forcing him to obey road laws is a funny idea that is milked for every laugh possible here. And if that's not enough for you, this story is also jam-packed full of in-jokes and callbacks to franchise history. 

WORST BACK STORY:

David Mariotte, “Race to the Empire” (Sonic the Hedgehog Free Comic Book Day 2021)

As always, IDW leaves me with few options in the back story category. The anniversary annual was the only issue with real backstories and they were all good. However, I am able to fill this category on a technicality. 2021's Free Comic Book Day issue — another delightful Classic Sonic story — filled its last few pages with a lazy retrospective of the book's first few years. It's really just a promotional blurb for the book's upcoming fiftieth issue, utilizing only archive artwork with trite words by editor David Mariotte. So it barely counts as a story but it did suck, so I'm calling it the worst backstory of the year. 

BEST STORY ARC:

Evan Stanley, “Test Run” (Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW): Issue 37-40)

I'm not sure there was a "Sonic" story arc last year that I loved all the way through. All of them had individual issues that worked okay but none of them held together as a satisfying whole for me. I would say the one that came the closest was "Test Run." I loved the idea of Sonic, Amy, and Tails trapped inside a frequently surreal pocket dimension, which began as a seemingly unending labyrinth before turning into an uncanny recreation of a small town. Tangle and Belle sneaking around outside, trying to rescue the others, was fun too. Especially since it gave Belle more insight into her past. Unfortunately, this degraded into a boring boss fight eventually but it was pretty compelling up to that point. 

WORST STORY ARC:

Ian Flynn, “Zeti Hunt” (Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW): Issue 41-44)

In the past, IDW storylines have felt drawn out or underdeveloped. None of them have ever felt pointless though... Before "Zeti Hunt," that is. This story truly seemed to be a filler arc, designed to give the book something to do in-between major developments in the Starline and Belle plot threads. The meat of the story was devoted to a fight between Sonic and the Deadly Six... Which was then resolved bluntly early on in the final installment, a tactile admission by the series that the fight didn't matter. This arc seems designed to remind us that the Zetis still exist before sweeping them off-panel for the foreseeable future. There were one or two useful moments throughout but, notably, not a single one of them revolved around Zavok and his crew. "Zeti Hunt" might be the low point of IDW "Sonic," so far. 

BEST MAIN COVER:

Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW): Issue 37 – Evan Stanley

As always, there was a lot of good covers this year and you really couldn't go wrong with the majority of them. However, my favorite was definitely Evan Stanley's A-cover for issue 37. Using a spacey, vaguely "Twilight Zone"-y space spiral in the background was an eye-catching. When combined with Sonic and the gang being all transparent and whispy overhead, it nicely established the predicament our heroes are in. While Belle and Tangle running forward in the foreground gives us that splash of "Sonic"-style motion and speed. Good shit. 

WORST MAIN COVER:

Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW): Issue 42 – Priscilla Tramontano

I hate to be a jerk about this but Priscilla Tramontano is probably my least favorite artist to come out of IDW "Sonic" thus far. Her artwork isn't bad but there's a loose, angular aspect to it that I can't vibe with. That alone probably wouldn't be enough to award her the Worst Cover Art distinction this year but issue 42 has, for lack of a better term, a dumb cover. For whatever reason, it depicts Jewel, Tangle, and Whisper jammed into a cramped corner. We only see the sides of Tangle and Whisper's face, while Jewel grimaces in an uncomfortable fashion. It gives the impression of the characters being stuck in an elevator and Jewel doing her best not to fart. Truly, a baffling pick for an image to advertise your comic book with. 

BEST VARIANT COVER:

Sonic the Hedgehog 30th Anniversary Special: Cover RI-A – Patrick Spaziante

Again, IDW gives us a spoil of riches as far as great variant cover art goes. Honestly, you couldn't go wrong with any of Nathalie Fourdraine's retail incentive covers this year. Yet I am, ultimately, a nostalgist so I am forced to go with Patrick Spaziante's happy return to "Sonic" comic cover art. And it's so good that I honestly don't know why this wasn't the main cover for the book. All the characters look amazing, so smooth and polished but also alive with personality. There's so many lovely little details here, like the grin on the front of Amy's car or the way Nack is sliding down a neon light tube. Choosing the Casino Night Zone as the backdrop was a great idea, because it's bright and colorful but also organized, so the cover never comes off as busy or garish. I want this shit framed in my house, it's gorgeous. 

WORST VARIANT COVER:

Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW): Issue 46 – Ryan Jampole

There were a couple of weaker variant covers in the last year. Cover B for the anniversary special was generic, with a weird pixelated effect that didn't really work. Abby Bulmer's B cover for issue 42 depicts Sonic running through a nondescript area while slightly off-model versions of the Zetis loom in the background. And, of course, I'm tempted to once again use this space to pick in Jon Gray, who contributed another fucking hideous B Cover to issue 37. Once again, I ask, what is that dude's obsession with shoving a hundred characters and as many colors as possible onto one cover?

Yet I feel like that would be too predictable, so instead I'll pick in another frequent target of mine: Ryan Jampole. I don't know why publishers keep inviting this guy back to draw Sonic characters when he clearly doesn't know how. Once again, he illustrates "Sonic" cast members — Tangle and Belle this time — with overly long, jagged limbs. And I think this is just a bad concept for a cover. Belle balances atop Tangle's tail in a way that doesn't look possible. The characters are surrounded by a raging forest fire but smiling in a happy, cocky manner. I think Helpful MotoBug is supposed to be narrowing his plain of vision by putting his mandible over his eyes. Instead, he looks like he's charging up Piccolo's Special Beam Cannon. A misconceived image in many ways. 

BEST STORY ART:

“Dr. Eggman's Birthday” - Thomas Rothlisberger (Sonic the Hedgehog 30th Anniversary Special)

There was a lot of really good art in the book this year. In fact, the standard of quality is so high for the artwork in IDW's “Sonic” book, that it's rare for any art to be distinguishable good. But “Dr. Eggman's Birthday,” the final story in the 30th Anniversary Special, has a very distinctive look. This is probably owed as much to Nathalie Fourdraine's colors as Thomas Rothlisberger's line art. Rothlisberg's artwork is excellent, as he makes the characters as expressive as possible. So much of the comedy in this story  comes from Eggman's face responding to the events around him, contrasting with the adoring eyes of his various robot minions. Yet Fourdraine's colors is what really make this shine. Her painterly style, which makes those Retail Incentive covers look so amazing, is allowed to shine here. The colors are soft but with lots of depth. It's just such a rich looking story.

WORST STORY ART:

“Zeti Hunt Part 3” - Jamal Peppers (Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW): Issue 43)

Part three of “Zeti Hunt” was split between Jamal Peppers, Bracardi Curry, and Thomas Rothlisberger. Rothlisberger and Curry both did fine work but Peppers'.... Well, in my original review, I pointed out that this was his first piece of “Sonic” art in a while and I suspected he might have been a bit rusty. The characters all look a little too stationary, their body movements and facial expressions lacking a sense of realism or weight. Everyone looks like balloons or CGI models or something. It's weird, because Peppers has done fine work in the past, but this definitely something lifeless and off-putting about his art here.

BEST NEW CHARACTER:

Kip the Capybara

The minute I finished reading the 30th Anniversary Special, I knew this guy was my pick for Best New Character of the year. There's so many smart alecs and goofballs in the “Sonic” series but have we ever gotten a really good straight man before? His deadpan reactions to Sonic's inability to understand braking or speed limits were hilarious. The way he sweats, grits his teeth, or sighs got honest laughs out of me. Who knows when Sega will permit IDW to return to the Classic-Verse and, even if they do, it seems unlikely Kip would make a reappearance. It's not like Sonic will ever have cause to learn to drive again. But I sincerely hope there's some excuse to fit him into a future story because I need more of a stuck-up capybara driving instructor responding to the wackiness around him in my life.

WORST NEW CHARACTER:

Hippy Mechanic Orangutan

Once again, IDW is pretty skimpy with introducing new characters. Aside from ol' Kip above, the Classic characters making their debut, Surge and Kitsunami, and a few random citizens in the “Trial by Fire” story arc, there were no new named characters introduced in 2021. I didn't love Surge in her initial appearance but it's also her only appearance thus far. I don't want to make the same mistake I did in IDW's first year, where I gave Whisper the Worst New Character award only for her to become lovable not long afterwards. So I'm playing the game of “wait and see” with Surge and Kit, especially since it's obvious Flynn has some definite plans for them.

So who is my choice for Worst New Character of the year? Once again, I have to go with a character who doesn't even have a real name yet. In issue 37, Belle descends into Restoration HQ. She's introduced to a orangutan mechanic who wears tie-dye, has little Jerry Garcia glasses, and says shit like “groovy” and “far out.” But just like all hippies, his peace-loving shenanigans actually hide prejudice and conservative values. After Belle makes a couple of understandable mistakes – including, for fuck's sake, making bad coffee – he threatens her with violence. Hippy Mechanic Orangutan – the script apparently calls him “Chief Mechanic,” which is just as catchy as what I call him – would later get something like a redemptive moment a few issues later. When he attempts to defend Belle from Starline. But I don't buy it. This guy was an ass to sweet, adorable little Belle so I don't like him. Fuck off back to your commune, you damn dirty ape.

BEST IDEA:

Focus on the Supporting Cast

A couple of times while reviewing the comic in the past year, I commented on how Sonic himself barely appeared in a couple of issues. But don't mistake this for a criticism. We all know who Sonic is, what his deal is. And we also all know that Sega is sometimes resistant to actually growing him as a character. So the comic making the collective decision to focus most of 2021's character development on Belle, Jewel and Tangle wasn't just sound. It was practical. And I can't say I'm complaining, as Belle and Tangle were the life blood of the book in 2021. It's notable that the arc that featured them the least was also the weakest of the year.

WORST IDEA:

Is there a plan?

For a while, it seemed like IDW was breaking the “Sonic” comic down into “seasons.” The first season was devoted to the Neo Metal Sonic arc. The second revolved around the Metal Virus Crisis. That ended over a year ago but the comic, it seems, is still struggling to establish a new direction for itself. Belle's development and Starline's simmering schemes have mostly been happening in the background of shorter arcs devoted to the Deadly Six, forest fires, or half-assed new plans from Eggman that hardly seem like concrete ploys. One hopes the series is building towards something bigger – and the introduction of Surge and Kit might be it – but it seems, for the last year, that IDW “Sonic” has been spinning its wheels a bit, unfocused and uncertain of what to do next.