Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 246

Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 246
Publication Date: March 2013

You might have noticed the small icon on the covers of the last few issues of Archie’s various “Sonic” books I’ve covered. The comics were counting down to the start of “Worlds Collide,” the much-hyped crossover with the “Mega Man” comic Archie was also publishing at the time. They might as well be counting down to the end of the pre-reboot universe. Sonic would leave Mobius for his team up with Mega Man and return to an entirely different world. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s talk about the penultimate issue of the preboot ‘verse, also the conclusion of the “Endangered Species” arc, first.

“Endangered Species: Part Four” splits the story in half. In the blasted-out remains of Albion, Team Fighters and Shard battle against the seemingly unkillable Krudzu-infected Metal Knuckles. Meanwhile, Knuckles and Thrash leap through his warp ring, taking their fight all across Mobius.

An interesting bit of trivia the Mobius Encyclopaedia points out about this issue: Despite being more-or-less the main characters of the issue, neither Knuckles nor Thrash have any dialogue! The two wail on each other all across the globe. They grunt and scream but nobody actually says anything. At first, this approach is interesting but it quickly gets dull. Even with the shifting locations, there’s only so much to be taken from watching two cartoon characters beat each other up.

Team Fighters’ battle with the Krudzu presents a few more interesting opportunities. Unlike Knuckles and Thrash, who are evenly matched and can’t really hurt each other, the Krudzu suffers quite a lot of punishment. Shard and Sonic drag him around the island. Amy hammers him through buildings. Eventually, the robotic plant is torn stem from stem. It’s a slightly more interesting battle. Steven Butler sure has fun drawing the big, monstrous Metal Knuckles. He also enjoys setting the fights against inclement weather, like snowstorms or lightning storms

The conclusion of this arc continues a theme that begin during the “Chaotix’ Quest” story. Despite swooping in and saving the day at the end of last issue, Sonic and the gang only recognize Shard as a threat. He has to quickly explain that he’s a good guy now. All throughout their fight, Shard has to constantly prove himself to the others. Tails ends up freeing Thrash’s devil dog siblings to help fight the Krudzu. This continues the theme of questioned alliances and forgiving past mistakes that Flynn has been stuck on lately. I’d like to read into shit and say this was Ian’s way of dealing with the Penders’ lawsuit. But who the hell knows.

As the impending reboot draws closer, Flynn continues to set up future events that he’ll never be allowed to pay off. After popping into the Tasmanian Devils’ ancestral homeland, Knuckles punches Thrash through a wall. Inside, we see an elderly Mobian Devil of undetermined gender laying in a bed, surrounded by loyal devil dogs. Who is this person? Thrash’s mom or dad? The clan elder who set him on his quest of vengeance? Who now, if the sorrowful expression on his/her face is any indication, perhaps regrets sending Thrash down such a genocidal path? It’s a beguiling image and one that will never be expounded on.

This is not the only future plot point that was left dangling by the reboot. The Krudzu’s adaptive technology is suggested as a possible cure for Sally’s mechanized state. Instead, she would just be back to (relatively speaking) normal following the reboot, without any further explanation. But, once again, I’m getting ahead of myself.

One can deduce that this was not the original ending Flynn envisioned for this story. Knuckles returns to the Shrine Island to be greeted by the mostly reunited Chaotix. They wonder where Julie-Su and Saffron are, though without mentioning their names. Ray picks up Julie-Su’s abandoned blaster, recognizing it. Knuckles punches the ground and screams to the heavens. On Albion, Amy cries a little over leaving behind a desolate, empty city that was once so full of life. Our heroes, in other words, have lost. It’s a downbeat, depressing ending and totally unavoidable. How could Knuckles rescue his girlfriend and his family if they’re now legally forbidden from appearing in the book? But this sad, unavoidable ending certainly leaves our heroes in a bad spot. And makes the entire adventure seem like a bit of a wasted trip.

So it’s hard to rate this one. It feels like an incomplete story because it basically is. There’s some solid moments. The team up with Shard is pretty cool. Knuckles’ agonized final state is certainly a striking sight. Butler’s artwork is, of course, top notch. Yet the most important, most emotionally valuable plot point is just left dangling. That leaves us, the reader, in a very uncertain place. [6/10]