Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 233

Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 233
Publication Date: January 2012

2011 ended on something of a cliffhanger, with the announcement that Geoffrey St. John would be going on trial for his obvious treachery. Surprisingly, that reveal got the first cover of the year. I guess that shows you how niche an audience this series always went for. That it could drop a bunch of obscure references and get away with it. While I certainly recognize Hershey, Warlord Kodos, and King Acorn in his Black Rider armor, even I had completely forgotten about Hip and Hop. Those are the kangaroos from “Sonic Spinball” who had a one-panel cameo back in issue 6 before appearing briefly as judges in issue 40. Enjoy this while it lasts, because most of this shit won't be around much longer.

In fact, the cover story is even called “The Trial of Geoffrey St. John,” cause Flynn wanted this to feel like an event. Sonic and Tails clean up some of the wreckage from the Battle Bird Armada's recent invasion of Mobotropolis – hope you were reading Sonic Universe to figure what the hell that was all about – and quickly rush over to the courthouse. There, Antoine has Geoffrey on the stand, questioning him about his allegiance to Naugus and his years of deception. Things get pretty heated, especially once the topic of Hershey comes up, but the trial does not go the way the Freedom Fighters were hoping.

“The Trial of Geoffrey St. John” is essentially Flynn attempting to justify his somewhat asinine plot twist about St. John being both a traitor and a wizard. While on the witness stand, St. John reveals some previously undisclosed info. That, following his father's death, he found a magical ring in his belongings and began communicating with Naugus, who was still trapped in the Zone of Silence. That he was working with the Freedom Fighters and the Rebel Underground to stabilize Mobotropolis, preparing for Naugus' eventual return. (And, by night, training to be a wizard.) This also gives him a chance to cover the character's long, convoluted history for those you weren't there at the time. In fact, a lot of “The Trial of Geoffrey St. John” is recap of ten year old comics.

It's pretty sloppy, as far as retcons go. Naugus being able to communicate between dimensions strikes me as unlikely, considering what a pain in the ass it was to get from Mobius to the Zone of Silence. Geoffrey working with the good guys in order to set up a stable kingdom for Naugus is... Convenient. By far the sloppiest retcon is Naugus just going on a rampage when first brought back to Mobius. Flynn has St. John admit his boss acted “rashly” and decided to lay low until he regained his cool. Uh-huh. And St. John suddenly pulling magical abilities out of his ass remains widely out-of-character, no matter how much glue Flynn applies.

There's a couple of things I do like about this story. First off, Antoine points out that everyone who was on St. John's secret squad were former Badniks, outside agents, and someone who attempted to assassinate the Princess. All of whom would've been viable patsies if Geoffrey needed one. That's a pretty elegant solution to Ken Penders' baffling character picks. I also like young St. John's rage at the Overlanders who killed his father, giving some grief and emotion to this story. And, despite most of what we know about the character being a lie, he really did love Hershey. That eases over her blunt, off-screen death a little. (Though Flynn leaves Hershey's fate a bit open-ended – no body was found – suggesting he could've brought the character back if he wanted to.)

And, hey, we've got a back-up story too. “From the Shadows” does not star Shadow. Instead, it's about Prince Elias. Faced with a city turned against him and a usurper to the crown, he turns to his parents and wife, hoping to move back to the safer Feral Forest. King Max is too senile to react while Megan wants him to stay. Frustrated, Elias turns to a shadowed figure on the outskirts of Mobotropolis. It turns out to be old spy master Harvey Who, another very obscure character who had one appearance in the book's early years and has since been forgotten, who is quickly talked into helping dethrone Naugus, suggesting Elias form a team.

What's most entertaining about “From the Shadows” is Harvey Who ripping into King Max. He blames the King for pretty much every misfortune that befell Mobius. Who warned him about Kodos, Naugus and Julian, only to see all three would-be conquerors be promoted. Yes, what we've suspected for years is true: Max was a terrible fucking king. If nothing else, this biting re-introduction makes us like Harvey immediately, which is pretty good for a goofy Dave Manak character that showed up in one panel ten thousand years ago. I also like the first scene, which shows Elias' dismay at his father's degenerating state. That's a nice touch. So it's a solid prequel to the Secret Freedom Fighters story arc Flynn was already cooking.

I have mixed feelings about the cover story. It's actually pretty good but deals with a plot point I still think is really dumb. And it's ending, where St. John is found guilty and then immediately pardoned by Naugus, kind of invalidates the whole thing. Still, it's not a bad issue I guess. The back-up is decent and the artwork, from ever-reliable Steven Butler and a quickly improving Evan Stanley, is solid all around. (Also, the fan art section in the back features a pretty bitchin', custom Mecha Sally action figure. I wish I had one of those...) Hopefully I'm not this conflicted about all the other comics that came out in 2012. [6.5/10]