Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 58

Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 58
Publication Date: February 1998

As previously mentioned, I did not read the “Knuckles the Echidna” solo series very often when it was being published. Like I said, this was not out of any ill-will towards the echidna but simply because money was tight at the time. Unfortunately, Archie was determined to have the two series frequently cross over. Issue 58 of “Sonic the Hedgehog” occurs right in the middle of Knuckles’ “The Forgotten Tribe” story arc, essentially expanding that story line from three issues to four. This really does a disservice to both series. First off, Sonic is cheated out of the starring role in his own book. Secondly, “Friendly Rogues & Foul Villains” has a totally different tone than “The Forgotten Tribe.” Inserting a Robin Hood pastiche into the middle of an Exodus pastiche robs both stories of their deeper meaning and fun factor.

Picking up where we left off, Sonic and Tails are chained up in the dungeon of a castle. As they explain to Yanar, a random-ass echidna who plays a small part in the book, Sonic and Tails’ journey around Mobius was interrupted by a freak storm. The two where downed in the strange territory of Deerwood Forest and quickly captured by Robians, loyal to the deceased Robotnik. Meanwhile, Knuckles befriends local hero Rob O’ the Hedge. Soon, the two teams cross paths, Sonic and Tails discovering the territory’s villainous leader has a personal connection to a friend of their’s.

“Friendly Rogues & Foul Villains” feels a bit like a throwback to an earlier time in the book’s history. The area is referred to as Snottingham. Dropping Sonic and friends into a Robin Hood-style setting really does feel like something Mike Gallagher would’ve done back in the day. Tails is strapped to a table and tortured with… Tickling. Contrasted against the mystical, mythology-heavy events of the “Knuckles” book, the story comes off as even sillier.

Yet that’s not totally a bad thing. The entire point of the “Back to Basics” story arc was to send Sonic and Tails on carefree adventures around the world. Seeing the hedgehog spin-dashing robots, escaping a dungeon, exploring a castle, discovering secret passage ways, and getting into a sword fight with a bad guy is fun. The dialogue is pretty goofy at times, which may be the fault of Penders’ uncredited co-writer Clayton Emery, but that only goes so far to drain the fun from “Friendly Rogues & Foul Villains.”

Even in a light-hearted story like this, Penders didn’t miss a chance to expand Sonic and Knuckles’ world. The story introduces Rob O’ the Hedge. Yep, it’s basically Sonic as Robin Hood, including strangled faux Olde English dialogue. Rob is a shade lighter than Sonic and wears a hood. Otherwise, the characters are identical. This is even a plot point. While this does nothing to dissuade Ken’s tendency for recolors, Rob is kind of a fun character. Like Sonic, he showboats and brags, despite being slightly clumsy. Yet this is an older archetype, dating back to at least Errol Flynn. Like Flynn’s Robin Hood, Rob O’ the Hedge makes rebelling against a villainous monarch look an awful lot like fun, not letting the situation get him down. Rob is definitely more endearing than his echidna love interest, Mari-An. Inserting Knuckles and the Forgotten Tribe into this story truly feels out of place.

Still, the only genuinely disappointing aspect of the story is its villain. Not too long ago, Antoine referenced his father being a proud member of King Acorn’s royal court and how he vanished during the Great War. Here, we discover his fate. Armand D’Coolette was captured by Robotnik and robotocized, becoming the wicked High Sheriff. It’s an interesting idea, showing that Robotnik’s death did not mean his empire crumbled overnight. There are still pockets out there, continuing to fight their dead boss’ fight. However, if the book was going to re-introduce Antoine’s dad as a Robian, I really wish Antoine had been along for the adventure. Imagine how much more heartbreaking that would be. That Antoine would be reunited with his father, only to discover that he’s a brainwashed robot, who has totally forgotten about his boy. Instead, Sonic has to feel angsty on his friend’s behalf.

Manny Galan gets credited at the front of the book but the pencils were actually by Art Mawhinney. And, goddamn, they are good. This is an action-heavy story and Mawhinney excels at action. The brief scuffle between Knuckles and Rob is fantastic, as is Sonic’s escape from the dungeon. It’s also great to see Mawhinney drawing a forested area again. Deerwood Forest looks beautiful. Yet Mawhinney’s cartooning roots truly make the goofier moments, such as Tails’ tickle torture or Rob’s strutting, look great as well.

Issue 58 would be a fun if uneven book if it wasn’t for the back-up story. “The Living Crown” is presented as part of a new series, “Tales of the Freedom Fighters.” Basically, these back-up stories would focus on what’s going on at Knothole while Sonic and Tails travel the world.

“The Living Crown” is devoted to exposition. While Dr. Quack studies the recently recovered King Acorn, he explains why Mobotropolis is still a monarchy. Turns out, the Kings are chosen by the Source of All, a pool of golden liquid in the castle’s basement. The Source of All is the building block of the universe, an apparent direct route of communication with God. Anyway, as a boy, Max bathed in the Source and the drippings were molded into the Sword and Crown of Acorn. The rest of the back-up essentially explains the business about how the Crown could reside in the King’s mind and why he has a mystic connection with the Sword.

Out of all the mystic juju that would be introduced in the book during this time, the Source of All is probably the most confounding. While the echidnas have always been very mystical, the Kingdom of Acorn struck me as areligious. Explaining the Kings take advice from a pool of molten gold in their basement, aside from being really weird, totally changes the context of what the Kingdom means. The royalty is no longer just a collection of reasonable leaders. Now, they’re divinely ordained. Mostly, the explanation for why King Max has a magical connection with his sword and crown is strangled exposition.

Also weird: No artists or writers are credited with this story, then or now. I’m fairly certain the first half is drawn by Sam Maxwell, as his big colorful eyes are hard to miss, while the latter half looks like Galan. As for the writing, who knows. It would be nice to blame this mystical la-la on Penders but it also reads a lot like Scott Fulop, who introduced the Sword of Acorn after all.

The cover story for Issue 58 sticks out among the stories it’s running against and has some problems but still manages to be fun. The back-up story raises more questions than it answers. Does that even out to a [7/10?] I suppose it does.