Sonic Universe: Issue 86

Sonic Universe: Issue 86
Publication Date: June 2016

During the weird hiatus that afflicted Archie’s “Sonic” titles at the start of 2016, preview images were still coming out for upcoming issues. While fans waited for the latest comics to actually come out, all they had to go on were new covers, occasional peeks at interior art, and plot synopses in solicitations. I was especially confused by the shots of Falke Wulf we got on these covers. (He also shows up on the “Brady Bunch” inspired variant cover for this issue.) Who was this OC-looking purple wolf motherfucker? And the sight of Eggman in transparent green battle armor made some wonder if the Chaos Emeralds would play a role in the final part of “Eggman’s Dozen.” I don’t know about you guys but I think it’s kind of cute when nerds are wrong about shit.

Given the rather opulent name of “Eggman’s Dozen: Finale - Synergizing,” the issue begins with Eggman’s team of bosses and the Naugus siblings’ forces facing off. The Egg Bosses proves more than able to take down the Badniks while Lord Hood’s hypnosis renders the Witchcarters useless again. Eggman himself takes on the crystallized Metal Sonic, subduing him with his spiffy hard light energy armor. The trolls defeated and his refinery regained, the Dozen return to their corners of the globe while Eggman plots his next move.

I know I constantly bitch about Ian Flynn’s over-reliance on action sequences, especially towards the end of a story arc. But I actually like it here! “Eggman’s Dozen” wraps up on a fittingly action-packed note. So why is it okay this time? As previously noted, Flynn has done a good job of building up the characters throughout the four-parter. You actually care about whose butts are being kicked here. More pressingly, this entire arc has been building towards this confrontation. We’ve been waiting to see Eggman, his team, and the Naugus twins throw down. The issue pays off nicely on those expectations.

And, yeah, Eggman gets a cool power-up here. In the long history of Archie’s “Sonic” comics, we saw Robotnik or Eggman fight a foe hand-to-hand three or four times, I think. He’s more of a thinker than a brawler. Nevertheless, there is a certain fun novelty in seeing the rotund one use his fists and his brain at the same time. The Hard Light Armor is a pretty cool sight, as holographic weaponry like that is always a neat visual. After using a big ass laser cannon to burn away the corrupting crystals on Metal Sonic, Eggman says the armor can never be used again. I can see why Flynn would make this choice. It would kind of take away Eggman’s main gimmick if he did stuff like this all the time. But it does seem like something of a shame to toss such a cool gadget after one use. (Similarly, one of the few other times Robotnik went hand-to-hand with an enemy. the “Sonic Quest” mini-series, also had him donning a cool battle armor that was used once and never again.)

Interestingly, the story’s central conflict is resolved about halfway through. Eggman drives off Naugus. Wendy is captured and Clove is ordered to decapitate her, when the witch convinced the fat man to make her an Egg Boss instead. After that, we get a long series of pages devoted to the Bosses returning home. Some of these set up plot points that have already happened: Thunderbolt having Master Emerald shares, Axel chasing Sonic around Efrika, the business with the Dark Phoenix Spirit.

Mostly, I like to think Flynn wanted to keep developing these new characters. Some are exhilarated by the adventure, Abyss rallying her troops and Ahklut ready to crush his rival again. Others, like Clove and Nephytes, are more concerned with their friends back home. (How Cassea greets her sister is pretty cute.) A scene where Tundra admits the losses of this war are starting to weigh on him is also very effective. It’s nice that the character development doesn’t end when the storyline does.

Naturally, Flynn uses these extra scenes at the end to set up some future plot lines too. Wendy’s first job as Egg Boss is to track down some unseen object relating to the Zetis, presumably that weird conch shell trumpet thingy. Maw is apparently tasked with testing out a new Roboticezer, with poor Tassel Boy as his subject. Nephthys also reveals that her gold mask covers a hideously robotic face, a Doctor Doom-esque attribute that would’ve presumably been further explained in future story. All of this set-up would be squandered by the book’s in-coming cancellation. I definitely would’ve liked to have seen some of these play out. (Probably not the Zeti one.)

Thus concludes “Eggman’s Dozen,” one of my favorite post-reboot story lines. I like the story so much probably due to my aforementioned fondness for “men on a mission” stories. Yet I also think this one is tightly plotted, balances character development and action excellently, and is generally fun to read. Ah, what the hell? I’ll crack out an [8/10.]