Knuckles the Echidna: Issue 8

 
Knuckles the Echidna: Issue 8
Publication Date: November 1997

The first part of the “Dark Vengeance” arc concluded with Knuckles in a tight place. Enerjak had grown to giant size and had Knuckles and Julie-Su literally in his grasp. Proving that Kragok got his sadistic side honestly from his great^x14-grandfather, Enerjak doesn’t just crush Knuckles right then and there. Instead, he teleports the Guardian around Mobius, from the surface of the moon, to the depth of the seas, to hundreds of feet above the Floating Island. Julie-Su, meanwhile, was left at the Dark Legion camp. She appears to blend right back in with her old comrades, confirming Vector’s suspicions. Meanwhile, Lara-Le attempts to contact Locke. Also, the Brotherhood at Haven have their hands full.

After an interesting start, “Dark Vengeance” moves most of its story lines forward. The most interesting one to me involves Julie-Su seemingly rejoining the Dark Legion. These days, we obviously know that Julie-Su didn’t betray Knuckles and friends. Back in 1997, her alliances were less clear. She throws herself on Kragok’s mercy and immediately gets back to work. The Chaotix are shown to be captured by the Legion and Vector is happy to announce that Julie-Su wasn’t trustworthy. (He continuously calls her a “witch,” the first letter begging to be changed to a B.) After they attempt to escape, Julie-Su blasts them with a gas pallet, seemingly confirming how duplicitous she is. Of course, the reader can probably figure out that Julie-Su isn’t a traitor. She herself seemingly doesn’t understand what she’s doing. It’s an interesting way to keep the readers on their toes.

As for Knuckles’ parents, that shit is less satisfying. Lara-Le has yet to be established as a truly strong character. From her introduction, all the character has done is weep about her son. At least this time, she takes some action. Desperate to contact Locke, she looks up Constable Remington. We get a brief glimpse into Remington’s history. His predecessor told him that the Guardians are probably left alone to their own business. There’s some conflict, as he wonders if he should break that vow and help Lara-Le. This isn’t super-compelling stuff – truthfully, it’s a bit convoluted – but at least the book remains focused on its cast’s emotions. That’s better then Locke’s subplot. He’s more concerned with Hawking, a man two-hundred years older then him, then what’s happening to his son. As always, Locke remains an evasive ass hat.

And what is Knuckles up to? This is the part of the book that I’m not sure how to feel abut. Enerjak spends all of issue 8 torturing Knuckles. Not in the fun way, with thumbscrews or jumper cables. As much as Penders would like to push this book into a more mature area, he can’t go that far. Instead, Enerjak uses his vast power to pettily fuck with Knuckles. He zaps him to the moon for a minute and gloats. He then zaps him to the bottom of the ocean. This leads to some alright action beats, like Knuckles avoiding a shark or punching a one-eyed monster in the face. After escaping that, Enerjak teleports the Guardian high into the atmosphere. Enerjak says he’s done toying with him and drops him. (The villain seemingly ignores Knuckles’ ability to glide.) Except he’s not done toying with him. He stops his fall inches from the ground. Enerjak then does what he probably should have done in the first place, by dismantling Knuckles on an atomic level.

On one level, this stuff is sort of fun. It’s amusing to watch the book jump around all these different locations and Knuckles’ journey to the bottom of the sea is a fun, pulpy element. However, Enerjak continues to not understand his own limitless power. He obviously can do just about anything, including changing sizes, unlimited teleportation, and molecular manipulation. Instead of just squashing Knuckles out of existence, he toys with him for an extended amount of time. I know he’s a bad guy, and that this is a children’s book, but Enerjak seems consumed by revenge. I mean, couldn’t he have just stuck the Guardian in a death trap and continue on his plans for world domination?

Still, issue 8 is still alright. Manny Galan’s artwork continues to be strong, if you can get use to his weird obsession with mouths and teeth. I like the entire subplot with the Dark Legion. I just wonder if the villain’s time could be better spent. Still, it’s already a more solid, focused story arc then the last one. That counts for something. [7/10]