Sonic Universe: Issue 34

Sonic Universe: Issue 34
Publication Date: November 2011

You know, guys, going back and reading a bunch of old comic books and then writing around 900-words-on-average about them should be an easy job. Sometimes, however, it can be a struggle just to read these fucking things and then write around 900-words-on-average about them. Especially when it's an issue that I don't really have any strong feelings about. Is this that mythical point, when doing this stops being fun and starts feeling like work? Thanks for that, Tracy Yardley. Anyway, let's get on with it.

“Babylon Rising: Part Two – Reunion” picks up where we left off last time. The Rogues have been cornered by Speedy and a fleet of Battle Bird Armada soldiers. They sure as hell want the cube-shaped key the Rogues have pilfered from the temple. The Rogues lead them on a chase through the near-by snowy mountains. However, once the Battle Kukku drops in on the fight, the Rogues are quickly subdued. Once the key is grabbed, the map to the Babylon Gardens is revealed.

The first half of “Babylon Rising” was mostly devoted to setting up the story with some heavy-handed exposition, plus a lengthy break for an action sequence. Part two is devoted almost entirely to action. The majority of the issue is based around a chase scene, with the Rogues trying to evade the Armada's forces. And there's some genuinely decent action beats here. At one point, Storm tears a tree out of the ground and swings it at a robot. My favorite bit is a panel devoted to Speedy wailing on Jet.

However, there's definitely a preoccupation with gimmicky in this issue. There's plenty of gadgets introduced here. The Armada's forces now include laser shooting robot birds. Speedy also whips out a laser-shooting watch at one point. The biggest inclusion is a magical ring that can create barriers that the Battle Kukku wields here, which he has never wielded before. That ring ends up being part of the puzzle to uncover the map to the Garden. I'll say this: These new elements are well designed. The robot birds look cool. But it feels to me like Yardley is filling a narrative hole with nifty gear.

Last time, I was hard on Yardley's dialogue, which struck me as stiff and awkward. Here, in issue 35, his dialogue takes a further weird turn towards shaky attempts at comedy. It seems to me that Yardley set out to write an action issue but swerved halfway through to write comedy. The only joke that really hits for me is the two time Speedy is mocked for the ridiculous egg-shell diaper thing he wears. (Though they call it “undies.”) Otherwise, a lot of it seems out of place. Like, there's a line about how the Battle Bird Armada goonies are getting better at shooting. That's a decent joke but doesn't fit in during a chase scene. Storm makes a super awkward baseball pun while swinging that tree, for another example.

The intentional comedy is pretty out-of-place. The unintentional comedy is fairly high on the charts. There's a sequence where the Battle Kukku drops out of the sky and proceeds to beat the Rogues up. Now, keep in mind, the Battle Kukku has never shown himself to be especially apt at hand-to-hand combat. Even in the “Tails Adventure” video game, the final boss battle only has him walking around and tossing bombs. Here, Yardley has the Battle Kukku slamming Storm into the ground and karate-kicking Wave in the face. He even does the superhero landing at the beginning of the fight. Keep in mind, this is a seven foot tall parrot wearing a pirate hat and lime green, high-heel boots. He's maybe the most ridiculous looking character in the comic. It's hilarious and for all the wrong reasons.

About the only thing I really liked about this issue, besides the jokes about Speedy's stupid underwear, is the growing rivalry between Speedy and Jet. Speedy was a mildly compelling villain before hand, with a defined personality and some complexity. We discover here that he has a resentment towards Jet, annoyed that he managed to accomplish his secret goal of leaving the Armada behind. This amounts to all of a few exchanges and panels. It's not the main point of the story. But it's a crumb of emotional honesty in a storyline thus far devoid of it.

Am I being too hard on Tracy Yardley here? Or is my total ambivalence towards the Babylon Rogues influencing my opinion here? Either way, I'm really not feeling this one guys. We've got two more parts to get through, so I'm not done just being a grouchy asshole who hates everything. I'm so sorry, guys. [5/10]