Sonic Quest: Issue 1

 
Sonic Quest: Issue 1
Publication Date: September 1996

The “Sonic Quest” mini-series has always raised a question in my brain: Why? Unlike the other Sonic-centric mini-series Archie would launch, “Sonic Quest” did not star a member of Sonic’s supporting cast, functioning as a pilot of sorts for a spin-off series. (I imagine Archie already had plans for their much-desired spin-off series, as the “Knuckles” on-going would debut the next year.) There’s nothing about this three issue mini-series that couldn’t have been told in the on-going book. Much of the story’s plot is deeply entrenched in what was happening in the monthly book. The “Sonic Quest” series would be plagued with production problems and printing errors, leaving it with a poor reputation among Sonic fans. For these reasons and more, it would be the second-to-last mini-series Archie would spin off from the main book. As I look back over these three issues, let me continue to try and decipher why they exist.

Plot-wise, “The Death Egg” saga picks up where Issue 41 left off. After rescuing King Acorn from the Zone of Silence, the King has fallen under a strange condition. Mentally, his mind remains scrambled and unresponsive. Half of his body has crystallized into a Chaos Emerald-like material. Tails gets the idea that Power Rings might effect the King’s condition. Sally sends the Freedom Fighters off in different directions, in order to find these rings. Meanwhile, Dr. Robotnik plans to launch his deadliest weapon yet. The Death Egg, a massive air ship, launches into the sky, interrupting Sonic’s plot to rescue the King.

Off all the various other “Sonic” medias Archie’s comic book tied into, the video games have always been the least important. Look no further then the various direct video game adaptations Archie has done. The “Sonic the Hedgehog 3” and “Sonic & Knuckles” adaptations were extremely loose. The “Triple Trouble” one-shot pushed the video game elements into a two-page spread in the middle of the book. The “Knuckles’ Chaotix” adaptation featured about three elements from the game. The comic has generally been too busy building its own weird mythology to focus on the video games. So, on one hand, that might explain why “Sonic Quest” exists. The series is sort of an adaptation of “Sonic the Hedgehog 2.”

Which may reveal the other reason why “Sonic Quest” exist. I suspect this mini-series was meant to introduce new readers to the series. First off, it throws in elements from two of the most popular “Sonic” video games, the product this comic was ostensibly meant to promote. Secondly, the book is packed full of exposition about things regular readers will already know. Sally spends an entire page explaining the events of the last couple issues. There are long word bubbles devoted to explaining King Acorn’s conditions, the function of the Power Rings, the entire purpose of the Pond of Rings, and what the Death Egg is. Then again I may be totally wrong, as this issue is also deeply connected to the other things happening in the universe. So, if it was meant to introduce new readers, it probably didn’t do a very good job of it.

After that previously paragraph suggested, issue 1 of the “Death Egg Saga” features some really heavy-handed dialogue. Mike Gallagher wrote this one but you'd be forgiven for assuming it’s a Penders’ joint. (Though Gallagher still found some room for his trademark puns.) The book is so busy laying down the details of the mythology that it doesn’t have room for natural sounding dialogue. About half of the dialogue here is devoted to blandly explaining the situation. Truthfully, the reveal of the Death Egg is shoved into the back of the book. Otherwise, what does this issue contribute to the mythology? King Acorn’s condition would remain a plot point for a while. Mostly though, it clears up a minor continuity error: That the Pond of Rings shown in “Super Sonic vs. Hyper Knuckles” and Issue 39 aren’t the same place. Gee, thanks for mentioning that.

So what does the first issue, punningly subtitled “Scrambled,” do right? Once all the explaining is out of the way, at least it has a clear plot for the heroes. Sonic and Tails head off to find the Ring Grotto outside Robotropolis, where Tails accidentally ends up sucked inside the Death Egg. Sonic, meanwhile, runs off to meet Carl Condor., the leader of an avian-themed group of Freedom Fighters... A character that has never been mentioned before. I’ve never been entirely convinced that Carl Condor wasn’t meant to be Cyril Eagle, a character introduced back in Issue 12 and rarely mentioned again. Of course, Carl Condor turns out to have been previously robotocized. I’ve always been a fan of the Condorbot, solely because of its pretty neat design. Disappointingly, the robot shows up, catches Sonic off-guard, and yanks him up into the sky. The Death Egg, meanwhile, doesn’t appear until the end of the book.

Manny Galan handles the artwork for this issue. Galan previously did pens for Issue 39 and his work there was pretty terrible. Galan has already shown a lot of improvement. He draws Robotnik, Sally, and Rotor decently. His Sonic and Tails need some work and they occasionally wander off-model. Galan’s Snively just looks weird. His facial expressions are slightly odd too. Still, Galan has a really nice sense of motion and incorporates lots of detail into his work. He’d get better and he’s already not bad as this point.

Maybe “Sonic Quest” will get better? The first issue has a pretty heavy-handed script and pushes the best parts to the margin of the book. Maybe now that the Death Egg has actually shown up, the story will progress from here. [5/10]