Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 15

 
Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 15
Publication Date: July 1994

How inconsistent the quality of Archie’s comic during the early years is honestly kind of impressive. The last few issues have been getting better, showing the comic slowly sliding out of the silliness that characterized the series’ beginning. Issue 14, especially, was the best the comic’s done so far. Issue 15 shows the series sliding back into its weaker territory. The weird part is that the exact same creative team was involved in both. It’s like one day they said, “We’re going to elevate the material!” and the next day they said “We’re going to do the same thing we always do!”

Issue 15 contains three shocking mediocre stories. In the first, “Rockin’ the ‘Bot,” Sonic rescues a frog from a mudslide. As an act of gratitude, the frog gifts Sonic with three magic stones, each one granting him a different ability. This comes in handy when Robotnik attacks with a giant robotic bug. In the second story, “What’s the Big Idea?,” Sonic and friends comically wonder what Rotor is up to in his laboratory. In the third story, “Animal Magnetism,” Robotnik attacks with a vehicle equipped with a powerful magnet. This is especially dangerous for Bunnie, what with half her body being made of metal.

I just read this issue a few minutes ago and it’s already starting to fade from memory. The first story is built around Sonic not remembering which magical stone does what. Thus, he becomes elastic or performs a super-jump when he wants super-strength. When he finally finds the right stone, the situation doesn’t seem to call for super-strength. It’s a pretty limp comedic set-up, especially since it ends up working out for him every time. The super-elasticity saves his life for one. (Also, Bunnie always has super-strength but the story conveniently forgets that.) There’s lots of expected bug puns when Robotnik shows up in the bug-ship, as you’d expect. Mostly, this story is notable for a few visual coincidences. The frog looks a lot like Froggy, who wouldn’t appear until “Sonic Adventure,” and the magic stones look a lot like Chaos Emeralds, which still didn't exist in the comic in quite the form they do today.

 
The second story is a silly joke three-pager from the Penders/Kanterovich team. Rotor has locked himself up in his room, masturbating working on a new invention. The other Freedom Fighters idly wonder what he’s up to. In concept, it’s a cute idea. What the characters imagine says a lot about their personalities. Tails thinks Rotor is making a Universal Fratistat, an poorly defined device that does… Something. Bunnie expects a self-watering, self-caring garden. Sonic wants a bad ass hover board. Sally wants glow-in-the-dark popcorn, which really doesn’t fit her personality. Mostly, the strip is devoted to silly gags, like exploding milkshakes, a PB&J sandwich in a jar, or the goofy reveal of what Rotor is actually working on. Art Mawhinney’s artwork is great but the story is neither funny nor insightful.

The last story is the one that tries the hardest. Though Bunnie has been given plenty of things to do, we still haven’t gotten a story that really probes her personality. Unfortunately “Animal Magnetism” isn’t it. Mostly, Bunnie is just a distressed damsel, endangered by Robotnik’s machine. The way Sonic defeats the tyrant – tricking him into pointing his super magnets at Robotropolis – is an incredibly dumb finale. Since Angelo DeCesare wrote this one, it’s also got it’s fair share of puns. Once again, Art Mawhinney’s pencils are lovely. Sadly, they are in service of an immediately forgettable story. The whole issue is forgettable. I’ve forgotten it already. What was I talking about? [5/10]