Sonic the Hedgehog: Scrapnik Island: Issue 4

Sonic the Hedgehog: Scrapnik Island: Issue 4

Publication Date: January 18th, 2023

This is how good the last issue of IDW's "Sonic" miniseries, "Scrapnik Island," is: It honestly made me forget about issue 56 of the main series, a comic I actually really liked! I'm sitting here, reading the conclusion of "Scrapnik Island," and thinking "Damn, IDW "Sonic" is off to a hell of a start this year!" Totally slipped my mind that this is actually the second "Sonic" comic published this year. I guess it's just the inevitable effect of a supernova blocking out the light of another star, even if that other star shines brightly on its own. Ya get what I'm saying here? This is a good comic book! 

We begin with Sonic strapped to a table while the Scrapnik Mecha Sonic monologue about his villainous plan. The device is tied to Sonic's head, another Eggman cast-off, will transfer Mecha's consciousness into Sonic's body. This, the robot believes, will allow him to escape the island. The other Scrapniks interrupt the process and destroy the machine... But not before Sonic and Mecha's minds are linked. They hear each other's thoughts as they fight through the enormous furnace inside the Death Egg. And this also provides Sonic with some insight into his enemy's thought process and motivation. 

All along, I've said that "Scrapnik Island" is the closest thing to a pure "Sonic" horror comic we've ever gotten. The monster movie ambiance have definitely come and gone throughout the mini-series. They are mostly absent in this final installment... Except for one element, early on. When Mecha Sonic is pontificating about his evil plan, he does so next to a big switch on the wall. When the time comes to activate the machine, he cranks that switch and sparks fly through the air. Ah, now those are some delightful mad scientist movie vibes! We just need some lightning strikes and a flickering Jacob's Ladder to really make the atmosphere complete. I'm a Frankenstein nerd. I appreciate these things. 

Those fall to the side soon enough but I don't mind it, as this issue is very focused on something else. As Mecha Sonic and his organic double battle it out, our hedgehog hero gets a peek at his opponent's inner thoughts. It seems that super villain verbosity rubs off on Sonic too, as he's thinking thoughts about "This anger... This sadness..." Sonic soon hears the robot thinking about pain, about being abandoned. After a big fight scene, Mecha Sonic lands in a pile of rubbish careening towards a fiery incinerator. He bemoans to Sonic that this is what he deserves, as he has failed in all his programmed endeavors. He failed to stop Sonic for Eggman and he failed to protect the Scrapniks for Sigma. In that moment, the villain considers himself "trash" and even envies Sonic's freedom from doubts like this. 

I can't help but relate to this. I don't know about you guys but I live every day of my life with what my therapist calls "intrusive thoughts." It's part of my OCD or depression or PTSD or some other undiagnosed condition with a D in it. I frequently have to fight back thoughts that I'm a failure, that I'm never going to achieve my goals, and that I should just give up and settle into being a useless piece-of-shit my whole life. It's only been the recent addition of medication that these thoughts have started to become more manageable and not cause me daily distress. Don't freak out about it in the comments. It's just my life.

So, yes, cartoon robot version of a cartoon hedgehog, I know what it's like to feel like trash. And this is where the most poignant moment of "Scrapnik Island" emerges. This is, after all, a comic about discarded robots bonding together and being rebuilt into functioning units again, with no defined purpose beyond just living their lives. This is a story about those deemed "trash" coming together to form a community, to be independent. The image of Mecha Sonic spiraling towards a "Toy Story 3" fire pit, consigning himself to the scrap pile to be melted into slag, literalizes the feeling of giving into depression and sinking into non-existence. 

Sonic, of course, does not take this for an answer. He tells him to “cut the crap,” the most mild of swears that was still enough to scandalize some poor delicate souls on Twitter. The hedgehog declares to Mecha Sonic that the individual gives himself meaning, that self-determination makes life worth living. That nobody – yourself included – can call you trash. He reaches out a hand and grabs a hold of Mecha. This alone might've been touching enough but Sonic has officially shattered his ankle at this point. It's only when Tails and the other Scrapniks appear that the two hedgehogs, one flesh-and-blood and the other steel and circuitry, are pulled from their impending doom. 

This moment could have been another example of this franchise's favorite moral, one that is so common in kid's media, about the power of friendship. Yet “Scrapnik Island” actually takes this one step further, into something almost profound. The other Scrapniks surround Mecha and comfort him. The robot looks at his own hands, under his own control. He acknowledges that life is full of uncertainty and that it can be scary, but those that you love and that love you in return keep you going forward. This is true, in my experience. My girlfriend, my mom, and my closest friends are the people that help me through the pain of existence. 

This moment is summarized by two panels that might've been sappy or unearned in your typical “Sonic the Hedgehog” comic book. Sonic actually cries. I guess the comic got around Sega's rule of Sonic never showing serious emotions because the tears are result of what Mecha is feeling in that moment, of the still lingering psychic bond between them. Instead of the sunflower Mecha was protecting being a plot device, it thankfully remains a symbol of the robot's evolution that is pinpointed in the final panels. This comic earns the emotions necessary to make these moments soar. 

The last issue of “Scrapnik Island” does all this and still fits in Sonic being a bad-ass. After the other Scrapniks wreck Mecha's machine and piss him off, the two launch into a big elaborate action sequence. Despite having the hedgehog equivalent of the Boot on his shattered, pained ankle, Sonic goes superspeed while fighting with Mecha. He pushes pass his limits and slams broken foot right over Mecha's head, busting the cast open in the process. This is a classically awesome Sonic moment, of the hedgehog's boundless determination pushing him to new levels of badassery. It's what we want to see our little blue boy do.

At this point, it almost goes without saying that issue 4 of “Scrapnik Island” is also gorgeous looking. Jack Lawrence's action sequences are vibrant and animated. He packs so much emotion into the characters' faces, making the heaviest moments in this comic hit the hardest. The little beads of sweat on Sonic's face as he runs, signaling his pain, or just the way Mecha tilts his head says so much. The panel where an enraged Mecha threatens to crush the other Scrapniks is fantastically intense. Nathalie Fourdraine's colors continue to be the real star of this mini-series. Shading makes every moment pop. Whether it's the shadows of Mecha's lab, the blue glow of his electric experiment, or the orange heat of the incinerator room, it all invokes the correct feelings in the reader. It looks perfect.

“Scrapnik Island,” with its presence of multiple old school Sega enemies or a climax obviously inspired by the OVA, could have just been an act of nerdy homage for us “Sonic” dweebs. Instead, Daniel Barnes and his team made this a wonderfully immersive series full of surprises and emotion. “Scrapnik Island” isn't just my new favorite IDW “Sonic” mini-series. It's not just the best IDW “Sonic” comic thus far. It might be the best “Sonic” story I've ever read, period. I sincerely hope Sega or whoever allows Mecha Sonic and Mecha Knuckles, both of whom get a big send-off here, to return in future stories. Moreover, I especially hope Daniel Barnes gets to write more IDW “Sonic” stuff. I loved this entire story arc and this final issue especially. Consider this one of the few straight-up raves I've ever written for this blog. [9/10]