THE 2002 SONIC THE HEDGEHOG COMIC BEST/WORST LIST!

Archie’s “Sonic the Hedgehog” series hit a record low point in 2001. There was a drought of good stories, decent writing, and even the artwork took a turn for the worst. The next year, the series bounced back a little bit. Karl Bollers cleaned up some of the mess he himself had made. The characters came back into focus and the plotting became a little more concise. It still wasn’t a great year for the book but it was a marked improvement over its previous year.

This is also the second year in a row that only thirteen “Sonic” comics were published, all contained within the main series. It would be another two years before a new secondary Sonic title was launched. So I guess I should get use to the meager reading list? Anyway, this best/worst list covers the following issues:

Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 106-118

BEST COVER STORY:
Benny Lee, “Mistaken Identity Crisis!” (Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 112)

Benny Lee’s “Mistaken Identity Crisis” relies on some sitcom stereotypes. A ploy by Antoine to prove his bravery to his father actually shows how strong the coyote is. Lee’s characterization is a bit simplistic too. Yet he summons up enough honest emotion to put the story over the top. The panel devoted to Antoine sadly fessing up to his own cowardice is touching. The direction the story goes in is hackneyed but done so with some genuine emotion. After all, a father’s love doesn’t need to be earned.

WORST COVER STORY:
Jay Oliveras and Pat Allee, “Cry of the Wolf” (Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 113)

Issue 113 has no reason to exist. Instead of telling a proper story, it lazily adapts an old episode of “SatAM.” The changes are limited, making this a direct adaptation with little purpose and no attempt to blend the two universes’ tones. The action is frequently pitiful, escalating in a futile effort to stretch the story out. What could’ve been a chance to give Lupe and the Wolf Pack a proper introduction is undermined by loose characterization and a railroaded plot. It’s shoddy work and never should’ve gotten the greenlight.

BEST BACK STORY:
Karl Bollers, “Forgiven” (Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 112)

“Forgiven” not only brings Lupe back into the book but, more importantly, focuses on the weight of guilt. Uncle Chuck regrets actions he was forced to perform while under Robotnik’s control. Everyone else forgives him. But he has to forgive himself first. Seeing Chuck, usually a stable mentor, in such a vulnerable place makes this story extra powerful. Acceptance and love wins out at the end, making for a touching conclusion.

(Is this the first time the best cover story and back story were from the same issue? I think it is.)

WORST BACK STORY:
Ken Penders, “Ultimate Power: Mid-Louge – The Lesson” (Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 116)

The “Ultimate Power” story arc was a middling affair, focused far too much on Mammoth Mogul’s latest plans while pushing the characters aside. But this “mid-louge” – a word Ken Penders just fucking made up – was especially pointless. Knuckles has an uncontrollable flash back for no reason. He witnesses an incident from his childhood, where he got smacked around and his Dad murdered three brain-washed Robians. How this reflects on the current story, I still can’t say. All it accomplishes is breaking up the narrative flow of a mediocre story arc.

BEST STORY ARC:
Karl Bollers, Death of the Source of All (Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 110-111)

2002 wasn’t a great year for story arcs, most of them being on the mediocre side. So to find the best arc, I had to get creative. In issue 110’s back-up story, Karl Bollers presented the idea that the Source of All – the Acorn monarchy’s magical connection with the creator of the universe – had died. The Sword of Acorn, the last remaining part of the Source, then became super clingy. Sally essentially rejects the Sword’s bossy offers and then, in the next issue, flat-out gives it away to some spider ninjas. It’s not super elegant or anything but it got rid of a dumb story element and gave Sally some strong moments.

WORST STORY ARC:
Karl Bollers, “Crouching Hedgehog, Hidden Dragon” (Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 106-107)

The infamous “Abusive Dragon Boyfriend” two parter. While the story started with a potentially interesting idea – the Freedom Fighters traveling to Station Square on a diplomatic mission – the first half quickly degraded into sub-par action theatrics. The second half re-introduced an annoying group of characters – the pretty boy commandos – but did little with them. Most notoriously, it handled a serious real world issue in a deeply awkward manner. Worst yet, it dragged a lovable character like Dulcy into this mess. The whole thing wrapped up on an emotional shrug, solidifying it as the worst arc of the year.

BEST COVER ART:
Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 109 – Patrick Spaziante

It doesn’t represent the story very well and some tacky taglines get in the way. Once you ignore that, Spaz’ cover for issue 109 is a nicely moody affair. Sonic stands atop an iceberg, adrift in the ocean. His isolation is emphasized by how small he seems and how ambivalent the seagulls over head are to his plight. It certainly makes our hero seem vulnerable. It’s an eye-catching cover that really piques the reader’s curiosity.

WORST COVER ART:
Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 118 – Patrick Spaziante

I can hardly blame Spaz for this one. For reasons I do not understand, Archie would employ a brain dead “magazine cover” gimmick for the book, starting in December of 2002 and running until issue 125. As a gimmick, it seems to alienate the reader base. The 7-12 year old boys probably aren’t interesting in magazine industry puns, especially those seemingly fashioned after glamour or gossip mags. This cover features a ridiculous drawing of Robotnik, his face locked in an awful grimace while shouting cartoonishly. Sonic, meanwhile, poses blanky. It’s all against a flat white background, the different elements refusing to blend together.

BEST STORY ART:
“One for All” – Jay Axer (Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 110)

Honestly, I could’ve picked any of Jay Axer’s artwork from 2002. The man regularly turned in amazing work, even if Archie frequently stuck him on back-up duty. His attention to detail is amazing. His characters are distinctive and emotive. His action is coherent and kinetic. I single out “One for All” because it also features some crazy, psychedelic images. Portraying the Sword of Acorn as a floating slice of cosmic space, while Sally explores a similarly far out area, makes for a really visually interesting story.

WORST STORY ART:
“Cry of the Wolf” – Many Hands (Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 113)

In a year heavy on Ron Lim’s awful scribbles, what event could possibly yank the Worst Art award away from him? How about the reawakening of “Many Hands” from whatever hell hole it dwells in? Hideously garish but sloppy colors, absolutely no respect for the character’s intended models, disturbing faces, lifeless action, and more horrors rape the reader’s eyes when they open this comic book. Thankfully, after this second shot, Archie would never let Many Hands out of its cage ever again. But twice was already too much.

BEST NEW CHARACTER:
Lara-Su

In the Best Character categories, I usually take a long term view. Which means the next two decisions weren’t made based on what was available in 2002. Going by this year’s appearance, Lara-Su is an underdeveloped character. Knuckles and Julie-Su’s daughter, she’s been sent from the future to prevent a tragedy from happening. What she actually ends up doing is standing around and watching other characters do stuff. She didn’t make the most compelling addition to the book, even if her design was awesome.

In the future, however, Lara-Su would develop into a lovable character. She has her father’s brashness, her mother’s toughness, but a sure-footedness and innate intelligence they both lack, wrapped up in a teenage insecurity that makes her extra likable. In other words, she’s what Knuckles would’ve been like if his father wasn’t such a scrub. Though she didn't put in too many appearances over the book's pre-reboot life, Lara-Su remains a fan favorite.

WORST NEW CHARACTERS:
Tommy the Turtle

Once again, in his initial appearance, Tommy the Turtle was inoffensive. He showed up, served his purpose to the plot, and died heroically to teach Sonic a moral about friendship. Sadly, Archie would take the wrong lesson from this story’s popularity. In the near future, they bring Tommy back. And they refuse to let him go, continually shoving the character down the reader’s throat, making repeated failed attempts to make him interesting. When so many intriguing characters disappeared after a few appearance, I have no idea why the writers were so determined to make Tommy work, despite all evidence to the contrary. There’s a reason I consider Ian Flynn killing this living tumor off a major accomplishment. Tommy didn’t always suck but his refusal to go away made him a cancer on the book.

BEST IDEA:
Wrapping up loose ends

If 2001 was the year the book introduced plot points for seemingly no reason, 2002 was the year it resolved them. That bullshit about Tails not being the real Tails was quickly cleaned up in one story. Rotor finally rescued his herd, after them being in one imperiled state or another for years. The Source of All thankfully dried up and died. The Sally/Mina/Sonic love triangle was put on hold. Geoffrey St. John realized he had been a prick and sought to correct that. Snively went back to being a human being. Even the Chaos Knuckles saga was sort-of, kind of resolved before the year ended. If only the book was this concise more often.

WORST IDEA:
Changes for changes’ sake

A lot of the changes that happened in 2002 were overdue. Others, however, struck me as deeply unnecessary. Was there any reason for Robotnik to become a human being again? What was the point of nuking Robotropolis? Similarly, why did Robotnik go through two different bodies? Why did the Freedom Fighters spend so much time in Station Square? Why bring back Dulcy just to write her out again? The same could be said of the Fearsome Foursome. Why bother killing Knuckles off? Why redesign the covers to resemble magazines? Many of these changes would eventually be undone, such as Knuckles’ death and the cover gimmick. Others would just be forgotten. While cleaning up 2001’s mess was a good idea, the book still added new layers of bullshit in ’02.