Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 64

Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 64
Publication Date: August 1998

After screwing around for seven issues, Sonic and Tails remember why they’re traveling around the world in the first place. As the cover declares, our heroes are finally going to confront Ixis Naugus. Set up as the new major villain after Robotnik’s defeat, a precedence set by SatAM’s unmade third season, Naugus has been a bit underwhelming thus far. He turned some people to crystal and threw Sonic’s plane off-course. Finally, the heroes get to take the new big bad on, head-to-head.

Sonic and Tails have tracked Naugus to the frozen Northern Tundra. Unlucky for them, the Power Ring that charges the Winged Victory has crapped out on them. The two are stranded in the ice and cold. Things get worst when Naugus appears. Showing off his elemental powers, the evil wizard proceeds to blast the hedgehog and the fox with snow and ice. Just when things are getting bad, unexpected help appears in the form of a cyborg yeti. (Cyeti?) The abominable snow-creature takes the unconscious heroes to a mysterious new figure called Nate Morgan.

“In Search Of…” is mostly an action story. Most of the pages are made up Sonic and Tails tumbling with Naugus. For the first time, the evil wizard really shows off his abilities. He transforms into a giant fist of snow, pinning Tails to a cliff. As Sonic races towards him, Naugus changes into air, the hedgehog charging right through him. Not only does this show off Naugus’ unique abilities, it also shows how different a bad guy he is when compared to Robotnik. The doctor didn’t like to get his hands dirty. He usually sent robots to do his bidding, outsmarting Sonic and friends. Naugus, meanwhile, wants to get up close and personal with his prey. That’s cool. More importantly, it’s different.

Steven Butler continues to provide the artwork for the book. For such an action heavy story, Butler gets to show off. He’s portrayal of Naugus looks like he step right out of the cartoon show. Sonic races through the snow, kicking lots of flakes when he has to stop suddenly. A cool panel has the hedgehog flipping up over a cliff, which is a neat image. Butler’s artwork also brings Eddy the Yeti to life. Say what you will about the character but Butler’s design for him is immediately appealing and neat looking. In short, this is a good looking issue.

While there’s lot of action to be had, Karl Bollers still sneaks in some honest emotions. While standing on the icy mountain, Tails bemoans their current situation. He starts to loose hope, without a mode of transportation and hundreds of miles away from home. Sonic tries to build up his little buddy, informing them that they can’t loose hope. If they do, the terrorists Naugus wins. It’s a slightly heavy-handed moment. Compared to recent stories that have been heavy on plot but light on character development, I appreciated Bollers pausing long enough to inform us how every one’s feeling. It’s certainly more compelling than the sudden reveal of Nate Morgan, a character that remains contentious for fans.

In the back pages, Ken Penders continues the current story arc involving Geoffrey St. John’s Secret Service. After Sally asks her dad what the hell has been going on, she gets another curt dismissal. Afterwards, the King briefs Geoffrey and his new team. Just as the Great War was heating up, King Acorn trusted St. John’s dad with his queen’s safety. While in route to the Floating Island, her transport was shot down. The Queen has been missing ever since. So that’s the team’s new mission: Find Sally’s mom.

First off, props: Art Mawhinney’s pencils are fucking awesome. I love the look on Sally’s face after her dad shoots her down. Unfortunately, Ken Penders once again pushes the story’s emotion to the side in favor of relentless plotting. Sally is frustrated that her dad is leaving her out of the loop. The reader is frustrated too. I suppose the fate of the Queen is something readers were wondering about. Considering St. John’s squad has yet to prove themselves properly compelling, I’m not super excited for their further adventures.

Still, issue 64 is a good one. A whole issue of great artwork is not something this book always has. I really like Bollers’ cover story even if Penders’ back-up could’ve used some work. [8/10]

HEDGEHOGS CAN'T SWIM UPDATES WILL RESUME ON OCTOBER 3RD!

Listen, everyone has to take a break occasionally. I'm a road trip this weekend, which leaves me with little time for blog updating. Everything will be back to normal on Monday. Until then, go outside and drink a pumpkin spice latte or something. See you soon, faithful readers.

Sonic Super Special: Issue 6 – Sonic #50 Director’s Cut

Sonic Super Special: Issue 6 – Sonic #50 Director’s Cut
Publication Date: July 1998

When the final part of the “Endgame” saga was originally published, it arrived on comic store shelves in a compromised form. Originally, “Endgame” was going to conclude with a double-stuffed issue. However, that didn’t happened, forcing the final product to loose about half its pages. I went over all of this in my review of Issue 50. Either luckily or unluckily, depending on how you feel about “Endgame,” the extended version of issue 50 was published as the sixth Sonic Super Special. Incorrectly called “The Director’s Cut” on the cover – “Extended Cut,” “Writer’s Cut” or just “Uncut” would all be more accurate – the issue reprints the final part of “Endgame” the way it was meant to be seen.

Plot wise, “For Whom the Bell Tolls” runs the same as issue 50’s “The Big Goodbye.” Robotnik plans to activate the Ultimate Annihilator, wiping Knothole Village off the map. In Downunda, the local Freedom Fighters help Bunnie and Antoine escape. As they make it back to Mobotropolis, they tamper with Robotnik’s doomsday machine. Sonic’s tense confrontation on the Floating Island with Geoffrey St. John and Knuckles is cut short by Dulcy’s reappearance. Assuring them that he’s telling the truth, they head to Knothole and kick some ass. Afterwards, Sonic races towards Robotropolis, having his final showdown with Ivo Robotnik.

Issue 50 – a book I like – had a lot of problems. The Director’s Cut, unfortunately, only clears up some of Penders’ typically messy plotting. That bullshit about dragon’s being able to detect truth is still intact. Sonic and Knuckles still liberate Knothole in only two pages. Antoine and Bunnie still arrive in Robotropolis far too quickly. Lastly, that bordering-on-incoherent resolution is intact. All that business about Dr. Quack betraying the king and Knothole slipping into a pocket dimension three hours in the future? Yeah, still there. It’s a tad sad to realize these plot holes weren’t the result of missing pages. Turns out the writers are just fond of bullshit story turns.

The extended version does clear up two minor plot holes. Now, we see the Downunda Freedom Fighters escape Crocbot’s prison. We see Bunnie and Antoine sneak aboard the transport ship. That’s nice, since the published version just had us assume that happened. (These segments, happily, only reuse some artwork from “Down and Out in Downunda,” the flashback heavy story published in Sonic Super Special Issue 4.) Another plot hole clarified is the destruction of Knothole. Instead of that happening off-screen, Sonic now sees it with his own eyes. That makes the brutal fight that follows between the hedgehog and the robotic dictator seem more reasonable.

So if it doesn’t resolve the reader’s confusion, why does the long version add to “Endgame?” About sixteen pages. Early on, we see Robotnik execute a fellow Overlander, someone he knew from the first Great War. Other than showing just how ruthless Robotnik is, and displaying how effective the Ultimate Annihilator is as ultimately annihilating things, those two pages don’t add much. About four pages are devoted to the events in Downunda, with some nicely gritty artwork from Nelson Ortega. Later on, a whole heaping set of pages have Bunnie and Antoine explaining their plan to Sonic. I’m not exactly sure that adds too much to the story. Essentially, the plot gets garbled enough that characters have to stop what they’re doing and explain what’s going on. That’s never good.

However, there are a few additions I like. The most important one shows Hershey getting her revenge on Drago. In #50 as originally published, a small rock tossed at his head is enough to bring the sleazy wolf down. Here, Hershey beats the ever-loving crap out of him. She scratches him across the face, knees in hard in the groin, pounces on him, punches him a bunch, and nearly crushes his head with a big ass rock. This makes Drago look like less of a light-weight. Considering what a scum bag he is, it’s also pretty satisfying. It doesn’t make up for Hershey being such a weak character but it’s cathartic for the reader.

The fight between Sonic and Robotnik goes on a little longer. I’m not sure who did the artwork for these new pages. It might be Steven Butler and, if it is, he might be having an off-day. Either way, Sonic is super angry and scatters some more SWATBots. I’m a fan of Angry Sonic and wish we saw him more often. At the conclusion of the fight, after both hedgehog and huge ass slip into the Ultimate Annihilator, there’s a one-page pencil spread of the two locked in combat, provided by Spaz. That’s cool. The page of blank whiteness that follows is unnecessary. Still, it does make a big fight seem a little more big. Lastly, a splash page of Sonic and the resurrected Sally locking lips, beautifully rendered by Art Mawhinney, is added near the end. You know I’m a die hard Sonic/Sally guy, so it’s satisfying to see them finally lock lips after so long. Especially since we know it’ll never happen again.

Normally, I’d ask if the quote-unquote “director’s” cut of Issue 50 is worth picking up for anybody but die-hard Sonic fanatics. Archie has answered that question for me though. This is the version of the story included in all future reprints. The extended version of “Endgame” has essentially replaced the original cut. Truthfully, it’s only a marginal improvement. The shorter cut, which I spent far more time thumbing over as a kid, is probably the version I’ll always prefer. As far as unnecessary director’s cuts go, this is slightly less useless than the “Donnie Darko” director’s cut. In other words: Still flawed, still satisfying. [7/10]

Knuckles the Echidna: Issue 16

Knuckles the Echidna: Issue 16
Publication Date: July 1998

After the business of “The Forgotten Tribe” arc and the action heavy “Chaotix Caper” three-parter, “Knuckles the Echidna” takes a bit of a breather with issue 16. Of course, to Ken Penders, a “breather” means a comic that includes lots of mythology building, a bunch of new characters, political hand-wringing, and serious revelations about Knuckles’ past.

After teleporting out of the desert, Knuckles finds himself in his mom’s apartment. He has a heart-to-heart with Lara-Le, who informs him that Knuckles was unusually intelligent as a baby. Afterwards, he discovers that his mom and Wynmacher are getting married. Which upsets the boy. Luckily, Julie-Su and the Chaotix are there to comfort him. Meanwhile, the Brotherhood of Guardians gather in Haven. A discussion about Mobius’ post-Robotnik status segues into a debate about Knuckles’ growing power.

“Reunions” easily shows both Ken Penders’ strengths and weaknesses as a writer. This was a guy who was willing to tell a serious story with a cast of funny animals. He has filled Knuckles’ universe with far more depth then you’d ever expect. He also takes the relationship between the characters seriously. At the same time, he’s obsessed with his own convoluted mythology. Too often, the compelling aspect of the book are sacrificed for more exposition, more debate about mystic events of the far past or the distant future.

The stuff between Knuckles and his mother is potentially touching. While Locke hides like a coward, spies on his son, and micro-manages the boy's life, Knuckles has had lots of interaction with his mom. Lara-Le greeting her son with a hug and a kiss is cute. Knuckles’ reaction to his mom re-marrying is realistic. He storms out of the apartment, shocked and confused. I can relate to the weird rush of emotion that comes when a parent re-marries. Knuckles, whose life has changed so much here of late, must take it especially hard. It helps that the book has portrayed Wynmacher as such a normal, loving guy, almost to the point of making him dull.

Unfortunately, this part of the book also has Penders once again hammering home Knuckles’ Great Destiny. We discover that he was super-smart as a baby and that his father probably experimented on him before he hatched. (Echidnas lay eggs, by the way.) The idea of Knuckles being some super-being, even beyond his duties as a Guardian, has never appealed to me. It’s kind of boring, honestly. The flashbacks also don’t help Lara-Le’s character development. We discover that she knew from the beginning her husband wasn’t trust-worthy. Which raises the question of why she went ahead with the marriage. When she seeks advice from her mother-in-law, the older woman basically tells her to stand by her man. No wonder the marriage ended. Lara-Le was afraid to act and Locke was a manipulative, secretive dick bag.

Speaking of manipulative, secretive dick bags! Issue 16 opens up Haven and the Brotherhood more. We meet a bunch of Knuckles’ ancestors, like elderly Tobor, strangely purple Thunderhawk, gruff and mysterious Spectre, and the non-descript Sojourner. Unlike Locke and Sabre, who just ramble on endlessly about mysticism and destiny, Spectre and Thunderhawk aren’t afraid to speak up about the Brotherhood’s bullshit. That’s refreshing. Combined with interesting designs, that’s probably why those two were always the most popular of Knuckles’ extended family.

But the Brotherhood stuff is still a bore. It’s revealed that the retired Guardians observe all of Mobius, not just the Floating Island. There’s lots of debate about what to do in the fallout of Robotnik’s defeat, about his former generals fighting for control. Considering these are human (Mobian?) lives they are pettily squabbling about, it doesn’t make the Brotherhood seem any less dickish. Making the echidnas the secret architects of the planet doesn’t discourage the belief that Penders’ considered his original character more important than Sega’s creation. Tobor and Thunderhawk even dismiss Sonic’s adventures! When the Fire Ants show up and start talking about stuff… Jesus Christ, I don’t care.

How torn I am about issue 16 is truly summed up in its final sequence. After leaving his mother’s apartment, Knuckles finds some alone time, chilling on a dock. Julie-Su, against the opinions of the other Chaotix, goes to check up on him. While Knuckles is busy moping, Julie-Su gives him a kiss. It’s a cute moment. I wish Knuckles and Julie-Su’s relationship received more attention. After all, last time he saw her, she was in handcuffs and assumed to be an ally of the Dark Legion. Still, the kiss is an earned moment, considering the character’s obvious attraction to each other. The final page, of the two sitting in silence on the dock, is rather sweet.

Once again, Ken has to take an elegant moment and bog it down in bullshit. Instead of just having Julie-Su and Knuckles be attracted to each other, being teenagers of the same species with complimentary personalities, he teases the Soul Touch. Yep, echidnas have a magical drive to seek out their future mate. Once they find them, an attraction begins, regardless of how they feel. Gee whiz, Ken, couldn’t Knuckles and Julie-Su have just like each other? Must everything be some sort of mystic destiny? So much for free will.

Still, “Reunions” is an interesting story. It shows that, when he paused to focus on characters, Penders was a decent writer. Disappointingly, even a mellow issue of “Knuckles” must be racing towards the series’ on-going myth arc. So it goes. [6.5/10]

Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 63

Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 63
Publication Date: July 1998

After a promising first part, the “Icon” two-parter ends on a disappointing note. Before we get to that though, let’s talk about that awesome cover. Sometimes less is more. Sonic leaning against a beautifully detailed statue of himself, amid a white backdrop, is immediately eye-catching and striking. There’s no big action or multiple characters. Just one guy and the centerpiece of the story. Spaz’ covers are always great but this might be one of my all-time favorites.

Anyway, the plot. “Icon 2: Cult of Personality” picks up with Sonic in the lap of luxury. He gets hand delivered chili dogs and daily massages. Tails, however, remains paranoid. The Sand-Blasters’ scheme to keep Sonic in the city for several more weeks doesn’t sit well with the fox. He’s right to be worried, as Jack Rabbit intends to keep Sonic there forever. The hedgehog’s not dumb though. He’s merely been playing dumb as not to alert their captors. The two perform a late night escape, deactivating the shield protecting Sand Blast City from the hostile Robians. Meanwhile, Snively and the other villains riot at Devil’s Gulag, preparing to make their own escape.

The biggest let-down with “Icon” is how it resolves so few of the questions we had after the first chapter. Why do the Sand-Blasters want to keep Sonic in the city? Because they admire him so much? So he can continue to protect them from the Robians? No answer is provided. Furthermore, what’s up with the violent Robians? Why are they soulless, when compared to the Mobotropolis Freedom Fighters? Why are they attacking Sand-Blast City? Bollers delivered a good set-up but either a lack of page space or just plain ol’ sloppy plotting prevents his story from being properly fleshed out.

Maybe that’s because the focus is on action. Honestly, I was a little disappointed that Sonic was onto Jack Rabbit’s scheme. Seeing our hero occasionally played for a dupe would’ve humanized him a little. Nope, Sonic knows something is up and has been plotting his own escape for a while. The Sand-Blasters are quick as well and block his escape. What follows is Sonic quickly dusting off the Sand-Blasters and Tails finding the repaired Winged Victory. This is disappointing too, as the duo easily disposes of the bad guys. Tails even drops a tarp on the team after the ol’ “Let ‘em go!” routine. Truly, the best moment here is when Sonic realizes the big ass statue of him in the center of town is also where the battery for the force field is kept. Sonic being forced to smash a statue of himself, and thus destroy his own sense of entitlement as a hero, is a good moment.

What follows is less of a good moment. The destructive Robians enter Sand-Blast City, like the zombies storming the mall at the end of “Dawn of the Dead.” Sonic is worried that his goose is cooked... Before Tails swoops down in the Winged Victory and rescues him. The two fly away from a city in flames. When Tails suggests that the Sand-Blasters weren’t all that bad and perhaps they could return, Sonic shoots him down. That’s right, kids. Our heroes just doomed an entire city, presumably with its fair share of innocent by-standers, and flew off without a care for any of them. Not exactly role model behavior, now is it? I know Sonic can be kind of a dick sometimes but this asshole behavior may be a bridge too far, even for him.

Bollers does do one clever thing. Snively and the other bad guys escaping from the Devil’s Gulag is contrasted with Sonic and Tails flying away from Sand-Blast City. As for that subplot, I like that Drago and the gang don’t outright murder Snively. They believe he freed them, somehow, and think it might be useful to have him around. That’s the kind of clear headed thinking you don’t expect from a bunch of thugs and killers. Still, this subplot is another example of how fast and loose Boller’s writing is, as we still don’t know why they were set free. All in good time, I suppose.

At least Steven Butler’s artwork is still aces. I love his gritty sense of detail. Sand-Blast City is such an interesting looking place, dusty and quasi-apocalyptic. There’s some solid action artwork here too. Sonic smashing through the statue of himself warrants a one-page spread. The chaos of the attacking Robians is handled well. I really only have two objections to the artwork. Continuity is a bit loose. For example, Sgt. Simian is wearing an entirely different outfit than what he had on last time. This isn’t Butler’s fault but Sonic has blue arms for about half of the issue. I also wonder if it was necessary to draw the female masseurs and waitress servicing Sonic on the first page quite so suggestively. This is still a kid’s book, after all. Still, Butler’s artwork helps elevate a story that has some problems.

The back-up story has Geoffrey’s squad of new recruits heading out on a training mission. They storm a former Robotnik building. The robots and guard systems inside apparently still function. The story shows the team working together nicely. Geoffrey St. John leads. Valdez uses his chameleon skills to sneak up and yank out some important cables. Heavy uses his mechanical interface to talk to the still on-line computer. Wombat Stu, uh, carries the rope. Hershey stands back and makes catty comments. It’s all in service of retrieving a functional SWATBot, which will probably be useful. The action is pretty low-key, even if Art Mawhineny makes it look far more exciting and dramatic than it actually is. While the team is still woefully undefined, it’s nice to finally see them actually working together and accomplishing something.

What makes the third part of “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” interesting is Sally. Yep, she’s here. The back-up story begins with her confronting Commander Smiley about what the hell St. John has been up to recently. He denies her access, saying she doesn’t have clearance for it. Properly pissed, Sally directly asks Geoffrey who has approval above the Princess. The King, that’s who! So Sally discovers her dad doesn’t trust her and her potential love interest is more then happy to keep her out of the loop. Isn’t that just like Penders to push the most interesting part of the story to the sidelines? I really love the look of shock Mawhinney draws on Sally’s face when she learns her dad outranks her. Art probably still draws my favorite take on Sally.

It’s a bummer that what could’ve been the most experimental period for Archie’s “Sonic” comic has continued to be undermined by sloppy writing. Another interesting story arc fails to pay off. That’s the name of the game, I guess. [6/10]

Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 62

Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 62
Publication Date: June 1998

When I said Karl Bollers was the new head-writer of “Sonic” back in my review of issue 54, I might have been exaggerating. Ever since the start of the New Direction, with Sonic and Tails walking the Earth like Caine in “Kung Fu,” it seems like Bollers has only written a few stories. Old-timers like Mike Gallagher or unwelcomed newcomers like Frank Strom seem to be dominating things. With issue 62, Bollers returns with what is probably my favorite story arc from the post-“Endgame” world.

While flying over the Great Desert, Sonic and Tails’ bi-plane begins to choke out. They make a swift crash-landing. Though the plane is damaged, Sonic and Tails are fine. In the desert, they’re quickly met by a group of tanks and armored trucks. Inside are a group of desert-based creatures calling themselves the Sand-Blasters. They adore Sonic, considering him a mythic hero. The centerpiece of their city is a huge statue of Sonic and, that night, they throw a big party for the hedgehog. However, Tails notices that something is up. The city is beset by hostile Robians who the Sand-Blasters vehemently hate. The other team also seems very invested in keeping Sonic and Tails there as long as possible. Meanwhile, on Devil’s Gulag prison, Snively and the other criminals are mysteriously freed from their cells.

“Icon” has a set-up like a horror story. We’ve seen the tale before. A couple traveling through a barren location find a place of safety, usually a hotel, that only brings them more trouble. “Psycho” is a prominent example of this story. “Wolf Creek” fits as well. “Icon” isn’t a horror story but it has a similar sense of underlying tension. There’s something off-putting about the Sand-Blasters. They’re blind hero worship of Sonic is slightly creepy. The almost racial hatred they have of Robians does not paint them in the best light. When Tails awakes the next morning, their hotel room has been locked from the outside. The Sand-Blasters tell them the Winged Victory won’t be flying again for weeks. Interestingly, this story plays off Sonic’s weaknesses as a character. He doesn’t notice how off the entire situation is because Sonic has always been a show-off and slightly arrogant. People practically worshiping him puts him in a blind spot.

It’s a good set-up which, slightly disappointingly, is all this story is. Just as it’s starting to get really interesting, “Icon” ends. There’s a lot of question lingering in the readers’ minds. Where do the hostile Robians come from? Why are they acting like mindless drones, while the Knothole Robians maintained their free will? What are the Sand-Blasters’ final plan? More importantly, what’s going to happen to Sonic and Tails when they discover the inevitable subterfuge? You can’t blame a story for leaving the reader wanting more. I just wish Bollers’ had a little more room to explore his creation here.

Character wise, there isn’t much to the Sand-Blasters. Design wise, they make an immediate impression. Jack Rabbit, their leader, has a studded leather eye-patch, a bandolier, a side-arm, and bandages covering his arms and legs. He looks like Bucky O’Hare’s biker ancestor. In a cute joke, most of the Sand-Blasters are patterned after Looney Toons characters. There’s a green mohawked roadrunner, a wiry coyote, and a fearsome alligator. It’s interesting to note that the Sand-Blasters traverse the desert in tanks and trucks deck out in machine guns. That, combined with their leather clothing, makes it look like Sonic and Tails wandered into a Mobian version of “The Road Warrior.”

Less compelling is the subplot about Devil’s Gulag. It’s not that Snively, sitting in his cell and talking shit with Drago, isn’t amusing. It is. There’s a lot of potential in seeing what the scumbags of Mobius get up to when left to their own. Morally bankrupt characters like Nack and Drago have always been interesting. In a world without major baddies like Robotnik or Mammoth Mogul, what could they get up too? However, how the villains escape is a total question mark. In space, we see a satellite floating over the planet. Someone aboard presses a button, freeing the captive crooks. Even as a kid in 1998, I understood what was happening here. Robotnik’s corpse hasn’t even cooled and the book was already priming for his return. Not even a dozen issues have passed since his demise.

A big shining bonus in issue 62’s favor is Steven Butler’s artwork. Holy shit, it’s good, you guys. The amount of detail in Butler’s work is insane. The opening two-page spread of the bi-plane crashes is incredible, trees tossed into the air by the spinning propeller. The Robians look incredibly creepy, appearing to be robotic demons. The vehicles and armors of the Sand-Blaster are vividly depicted. When Butler drew the Sonic characters, they always seemed slightly taller, more mature. He was also great at action. Sonic spinning into a cyclone, kicking up a massive dust storm, could’ve been badly drawn. Yet Butler keeps it alive, producing some dynamic art. The final page of the story, of the villains rioting in Devil’s Gulag, looks like Spaz could’ve drawn it. Fantastic.

The back-up story continues the “Tales of the Freedom Fighters” arc. Now that Geoffrey St. John has assembled his team, he has to start training them. Heavy and Bomb are quickly added, after blowing up Geoffrey’s office. The next day he shows the team their secret weapon - a device that fires a concussive blast - before he drops Hershey into a pool with a robotic shark. She doesn’t immediately die, the team saves her, and Geoffrey proclaims the first day of training a success.

My biggest problem with this arc continues. Penders doesn’t provide us with a good bead on any of these characters. Valdez the Chameleon remains a mystery. Wombat Stu, probably the least fleshed-out member of the Downunda Freedom Fighters, plays like a less intelligent, slightly scrappier version of Tails. Hershey is a damsel in distress in this story. I still don’t know why someone who tried to assassinate royalty would be selected to be a royal spy. Why do Heavy and Bomb want in on this? Heavy basically says “there’s nothing else for us to do” and Geoffrey lets them on the team. The ensemble is interesting but there’s so little to go on.

As an action story, this works slightly better. The back-up promises us a peak at what role espionage will play in a post-Robotnik world. It doesn’t really deliver but the promise is worth something. The action beat, of the team working together to rescue Hershey from a robot shark, isn’t bad. I mean, a sentient bomb throwing himself into the mouth of a robot shark and then exploding is worth something. Art Mawhinney’s artwork is swell. I especially like the shot of other trainees practicing their skills. Archie should’ve let Mawhinney design characters more often. I would’ve liked to have seen more of the raccoon girl dangling off the gymnastic rings, for one example.

An mysterious, promising cover story and an overly thin if competent back-up story? That’s a [7/10] for you, issue 62.

Knuckles the Echidna: Issue 15

Knuckles the Echidna: Issue 15
Publication Date: June 1998

After an incredibly awkward middle chapter, “The Chaotix Caper” recenters in its final act. Julie-Su and Remington escape detection by Ebony Hare and his gang. They track the crook to the factory where he’s poisoning the chili dog sauce with the L.S.D. The Chaotix get out of the hospital just in time to assist them, aside from Charmy who is still recovering from surgery. The near death experience has the bee reconsidering his own life decisions. Meanwhile, in the desert, Knuckles’ powers continue to grow in intensity.

The biggest problem with the conclusion to “The Chaotix Caper” is that Ebony Hare’s motivation still isn’t clarified. After the encounter with Julie-Su and Remington, the bad guy feels the heat. He decides to shut down his operation for a while. What the crime boss hoped to accomplished by dosing the chili sauce with L.S.D. isn’t explained. Why he teamed with Renfield T. Rodent, sneaking the drug out through Happyland, also aren’t elaborated on. If the L.S.D. is addictive, we see no signs of this. With the exception of Charmy, the Chaotix are just fine after their dosing. It’s definitely an underdeveloped aspect of the story. Ebony Hare and his gang are undefined bad guys, doing evil stuff for no apparent reason.

Rutterless villains aren’t enough to derail what is otherwise a fun issue. No. 15 is action-packed, moving quickly. Julie-Su escapes her seemingly fatal plunge by grabbing a grappling hook from a hidden department in her boots. (This explains why she wears those ridiculous boots but still doesn’t justify the half-vest/tank top number.) Julie-Su swinging into an apartment building and sneaking around with Remington is good fun.

The sneaking continues to be fun when they head for the factory district. The Chaotix leaving the hospital allows the team to rejoin the action. This builds to a fun climax in the factory. Julie-Su and Espio avoid the big ass revolver Hare brings with him. Remington is about to get murdereized by Blackjack when Mighty saves his ass, a funny moment. Vector proves kind of useful by grabbing Hare’s moll, an otherwise pointless character. Getting to see the Chaotix be crook-smashing bad asses is fun. It’s the reason we read the book.

The team interaction serves another purpose. After two story arcs of Julie-Su’s loyalties being undetermined, “The Chaotix Caper” has her finally being accepted as a member of the team. Vector doesn’t make one despairing remark about her the whole issue! In many ways, Julie-Su is the most competent member of the Chaotix. She certainly gets the best action beats. Espio’s ability to cloak himself comes up a few times, which is nice. While Mighty’s super strength is useful, it’s his sense of humor that truly characterizes him. Another thing I really like is that several other characters repeatedly call out how fucking useless Vector is. It’s kind of odd that the Chaotix finally came together as a team after Knuckles is out of the picture for a while.

The team is important to this story. Charmy isn’t in most of the issue, as he’s in surgery on the first page. How exactly some drugged chili dogs made him sick enough that invasive surgery was required, I don’t know. Apparently, the close calls has the boy change his mind about his destiny. The finale of issue 15 is genuinely touching, as Charmy returns to his hive to bury Mello. Hearing heart-felt goodbyes to a fallen friend, followed by a rose being dropped on the casket, isn’t something you’d expect to see in a “Sonic the Hedgehog” comic. At story’s end, Charmy decides to rejoin the hive and take on his royal title. Just when the character was getting interesting, Ken goes and writes him out of the book. Still, at least Charmy gets a decent farewell.

I like “The Chaotix Caper” story arc for another, possibly entirely puerile reason. This is about as dark as Archie’s “Sonic”-verse has ever gotten. The story begins with a child dying. The villains are poisoning unsuspecting innocents. The main cast unknowingly takes a dose of hallucinogenic drugs. Julie-Su is thrown to her death, nearly hitting the pavement. The villains and heroes alike brandish big ass guns, threatening to shoot people. Considering this is a universe that started with a cartoon hedgehog running fast, collecting rings, and jumping on robot’s heads, that’s a startling change. And one I welcome. A more grounded, dangerous world is a more exciting one.

A story thread burdening the entire arc has been Knuckles wandering around the desert. He’s still there. Locke and Sabre look on grimly, as Knuckles uses his newly-discovered and still not understood powers to magically summon a portal back to Echidnopolis. His father and granddad worry that Knuckles could become another Enerjak. (And he would, in about 145 issues.) Knuckles’ growing mystical power isn’t something that interests me. The grave decisions the Brotherhood has to make really do not interest me. Still, Locke promise to gather the guardians together suggests that this lingering subplot tumor might actually go somewhere in the near future. That would be a nice change.

I like to see Knuckles and his friends working together, kicking ass. This is why “The Dark Legion” mini-series was the previous high water mark for the “Knuckles” solo book. Penders was so invested in Knuckles’ mystical side that he’s actually become a detriment to his own book. Removing him from the equation allowed the Chaotix to go on an action packed adventure. Though “The Chaotix Caper” was still hampered by the writer’s inability to create a smooth plot, at least it had a great start and a fun conclusion. That counts for something. [7/10]