Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 55

 
Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 55
Publication Date: December 1997

Issue 54 of “Sonic the Hedgehog,” one of the most emotionally satisfying story that had appeared in the book in a while, ended on a cliffhanger. Issue 55 picks up right where that story left off, with Sonic, Sally, and Antoine in pursuit of Snively’s EggRobos. Instead of doing the logical thing and letting writer Karl Bollers continue the story he was obviously telling last time, Archie instead handed the reins of issue 55 to Frank Strom. I’m not really sure how Strom got this gig. According to his website – which hasn’t been updated since 2005 –  his work before “Sonic” mostly included pornographic comics and a long run on an “Elvira, Mistress of the Dark” series. Not exactly the family entertainment you associate with Archie. Strom would return a few times to write and draw “Sonic,” each time mostly focusing on his own characters and settings.

For example: The trail leads the trio of Freedom Fighters to a clearing in the woods. There, the EggRobos have activated a giant driller, searching through the ground for Power Rings. Near by, Sally discovers a tomb-like containment unit. Upon opening it, a Robotnik-created cyborg calling himself Monkey Khan emerges. With his apparent ability to manipulate the weather, Khan leaps on a cloud and starts blasting robots with lightening bolts. He also kidnaps Sally, which pisses Sonic off. Antoine and the hedgehog have to work together to defeat the remaining EggRobos and rescue the princess.

Let’s talk about Monkey Khan. If you couldn’t guess from the name, Monkey Khan is yet another variation on Sun Wukong, otherwise known as the Monkey King, a character from the 16th century Chinese epic fantasy novel “Journey to the West.” The story has been loosely adapted many times over the centuries, such as the cult classic TV series “Monkey” or Stephen Chow’s 2013 feature film. Most famously, the Monkey King also inspired Goku from “Dragon Ball.” Monkey Khan has all the elements we associate with the character. Firstly, he’s a monkey, obviously. Presumably using his elementary powers, he creates a cloud to float on. He also swings a staff around, which routinely disappears from page-to-page. In short, Monkey Khan adds nothing to a character that was already well-trod literary ground in 1997.

The story, which is given the groan-worthy name “Monkey Madness,” is pretty useless too. It’s full of people acting stupidly and minor plot holes. Despite the area being full of killer robots, Sally separates from the group to investigate on her own. The EggRobos have been instructed by Snively to search for Ixis Naugus but instead dig up a power ring. Which Khan then takes for some reason. Despite Khan just destroying the robots, Sonic attacks him. Even though he saw Sally when she opened his prison, Khan is overwhelmed by her beauty when he looks at her the second time. The Princess spends the rest of the story as Khan’s hostage. The second half of the story is devoted to Sonic and Antoine overcoming their differences and working together. This ignores the fact that Sonic and Antoine have been on equal footing for a while now. Afterwards, Monkey Khan flies off on his own adventures. Basically, the on-going plot pauses for an entire issue just so Frank Strom can introduce his lame original character.

Strom also draws the story. Objectively, I guess his artwork isn’t too terrible. He tends to draw Antoine’s sword in such a way that it looks like a knife. Sonic’s jaw frequently inflates in weird ways. Monkey Khan’s head, limbs, and arms are about as twice as big as everyone else’s. Sonic looks hopelessly awkward when curled into a ball and one panel has his legs stretching on far too long. His Sally looks decent though. Mostly, Strom’s artwork just strikes me as horribly unappealing. It’s very flat and his facial expressions are cartoonish in a weird way. It seems to me that his personal style is just horribly at odds with the prevailing look of the “Sonic” book. I can’t say I’m a fan.

The back-up story is… Well, also not that hot. In “Rise of the Robians,” we finally see the oppression the Robotocized Mobians have been facing from the organic furries. A female peacock, after being spotted walking around Robotnik’s old laboratory, is cornered by a mob of torch-wielding Knothole residents. Uncle Chuck intervenes, in hopes of instilling some order. The mob is equally antagonistic towards him. That is, until he takes this issue to the Princess. However, Sally is out of town, getting manhandled by Monkey Khan. Instead, King Acorn steps in. As he has been for a few issues now, the King acts like a massive asshole and declares the Robian peacock be put to death. He then smacks Geoffrey St. John around, collapsing afterwards. Whatever momentum the story might have had is derailed when Sonic and Sally waltz back in. Knuckles’ appears on a monitor, saying the Floating Island is in a danger. And where off to a crossover in issue 9 of “Knuckles.”

“Rise of the Robians” at least resolves two issues. Since “Brave New World,” the Robians have been talking about how fearful the fleshies are of them. Despite the repeated references, this is the first time we see anything of this nature. Secondly, the story confirms that King Acorn has been acting like a dick not because he’s just a dick. Instead, he clearly has some mental condition, a side-effect of half his body being turned to crystal. The rest of the story is a mess though. The crowd of angry villagers are cartoonish. The victimized Robian comes off as a bubble-brained victim. King Acorn’s behavior comes off as pointlessly mean-spirited. Him smacking St. John around is more likely to cause unintentional laughter then gasps.

The artwork, from an entity calling itself “Andy Underwood and Edward Artistic Studios,” is bad. The rioters look generic. The peacock looks weirdly proportioned. In the second half of the story, everyone grows massive heads and tiny bodies. In the final panel, Sonic’s hand twists in a horrible way while his head balloons to massive side. It’s bad.

The whole issue is bad. The cover story is lame, introducing a character nobody would care about until Ian Flynn gave him some personality 147 issues later. The back-up story is needlessly melodramatic. All the artwork is awkward. What a lame way for “Sonic” to close out 1997. [4/10]