Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 119

Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 119
Publication Date: January 2003

Issue 119 is an issue of “Sonic the Hedgehog” I remember mostly for how mediocre it is. Revisiting the story, that perception is not changed. Let’s get right to it. “Cater-Killer is Coming” begins with Sonic racing into the ridiculously named Furville, a previously unmentioned village. Robotnik has unleashed his latest weapon of mass destruction, a new version of Cater-Killer. Unlike the previous version, which was a small Badnik, this Cater-Killer is a giant, indestructible train that barrels through everything in its path. Sonic and Tails have to stop this thing before it reaches Knothole.

In “Cater-Killer is Coming,” Benny Lee shows off a previously undisplayed talent for bizarre dialogue. Naming the village “Furville” is a really weird decision. The residents of the village seemingly have no idea who Sonic is and ask him “what’s the hubbub, bub?” Later, Sonic calls Tails “bud.” Other corny lines like “Aw, for cryin’ out loud…” and “I can hack it!” are displayed throughout. The only time Lee’s off-beat dialogue is amusing is at the very end, where Tails doesn’t understand a pun Sonic makes about Cater-Killer going off a cliff.

Plot-wise, “Cater-Killer’s Coming” is a super lame story. I have no idea why Lee re-invented Cater-Killer – a purple, cartoon robot – as an unstoppable juggernaut, bullet train. The action escalates so quickly. Sonic is warning people about Cater-Killer and then, in the next scene, he’s working with Tails to stop the machine. How does Sonic penetrate Cater-Killer’s impenetrable armor? He pulls a Flash by vibrating his molecules through the armor. When a super-human like Barry Allen pulls that off, it’s one thing. I don’t think Sonic is quite fast enough to casually fuck with the laws of physics like that. It’s such an easy way to defeat the main threat, a lame ending to a lame stories. (Robotnik also casually drops the tidbit that he knows the location of Knothole. I don’t what’s keeping him from just firebombing the kingdom to the ground.)

That action heavy focus continues in the second story. “Dust Bunnie” stars, naturally, Bunnie. She receives a distress signal in the desert. Upon arriving at the location, she’s shot down and captured. Turns out, the Sand Blasters are out for revenge, hoping to lure Sonic to their base. They captured Bunnie instead, who they figure is just as good. They plan to feed the Rabbot to the crowd of crazed Robians. It doesn’t work out too well for them.

“Dust Bunnie” tries to pick up a plot point abandoned a while ago. Sonic didn’t face the consequences of letting the dangerous Robians invade Sand Blast City. In fact, Bunnie scolds Jack Rabbit for treating Sonic badly! But resolving the Sand Blast City plot line isn’t the main point of “Dust Bunnie.” Instead, the story is mostly devoted to Bunnie wrecking everybody’s shit. An amazing one page spread is devoted to Bunnie wrecking the Robians attacking him. Too rarely did we get to see Bunnie kick massive amounts of ass like this and there’s something deeply satisfying about it. Even if her super-strength allows her to easily escape the situation, draining any tension from it.

It’s appropriate that Steven Butler would draw “Dust Bunnie,” as he handled the first appearance of the Sand Blasters, way back in issue 62. Detailed action and sexy women are Butler’s specialties, making him a great choice for this story. Bunnie has rarely looked better, especially a panel that lingers lasciviously on her legs and ass. The action, meanwhile, is amazing. The panels devoted to Bunnie dismantling the attacking robots, or escaping the prison, show an impressive force and power. “Dust Bunnie” is kind of a nothing story but admittedly made an impression on me.

The last story turns attention towards Rotor and Nicole, two often neglected characters. “Time Code” has Rotor attempting to crack Nicole’s interior code, in hopes of learning her secret origins. He’s not able to get pass the computer’s protective protocols. A flash forward to the future, reminding us that a future version of Rotor built Nicole and sent her back in time, points out that Nicole’s firewall is apparently impenetrable. The brainy walrus then utilizes a similar defense to protect Knothole’s computers from Robotnik.

There's not much to “Time Code” but it does, admittedly, have one or two things I like. There’s some amusing interaction between Rotor and NICOLE. Up until this point, NICOLE hasn’t really been treated like a character. She occasionally fires off a sassy one-liner but mostly exists to explain science-y stuff. So this story, where she trades banter and pithy remarks with Rotor, marks one of the first times she truly started to develop a personality. We also get some cute insight into Rotor’s personality. A panel is devoted to the walrus detailing the role curiosity has played in life, how it’s his main driving force.

Otherwise, there’s not much to this one. The flash-forward to the future, showing off NICOLE’s time travel laden origin, is mostly unnecessary. I’ve never found this explanation for the computer to be very satisfying, since it mostly existed as a way for Ken to revisit that future Mobius he loves so much for some reason. The conclusion raises some questions. If Rotor can’t hack Nicole’s firewall, how can he create a similar defense for Knothole’s computer? Either way, Art Mawhinney’s artwork is pretty good.

None of the stories in issue 119 really rise to above mediocre. The cover story is probably Benny Lee’s weakness attempt so far. The third story has a few interesting elements but doesn’t add much. The middle story is mostly pointless but certainly provides some amusing scenes. Over all, you won’t miss too much if you skip this one. [6/10]