Sonic the Hedgehog (1993), Episode 2.08: The Void

Sonic the Hedgehog (1993), Episode 2.08: The Void
Original Air Date: October 29th, 1994

As I’ve already talked about, season two of “SatAM” had a structure that was rare in children’s television at the time but is more common now. The individual episodes were relatively stand-alone but several arcs ran throughout the season. (This is a structure “SatAM” shared with contemporary shows like “Batman: The Animated Series,” “X-Men,” and “Gargoyles” but, because it lacked the really nice animation and design work of those shows, no mainstream critics noticed.) Several of those plot points would come to the front in “The Void,” the eighth episode of the season. While I watched those other shows too, “SatAM” bringing back one-off characters and reoccurring concepts really impressed me as a young kid.

“The Void” begins with Sonic running through the Great Unknown, the blasted-out hellscape around Robotropolis. (The comic would take this same concept and call it the Forbidden Zone, which was something slightly different in the show.) That’s when a huge psychedelic portal to the Void opens under him, which he barely escapes. He retrieves an arcane ring from the area. He brings this back to Sally, who assumes it’s from an ancient culture she is studying. A strange trance is then cast over Sally and Bunnie who are drawn back to the Void. Within dwells Naugus, a sinister sorcerer Robotnik banished to the Void in the early days of the war. Though he’s all-powerful in the Void, he can not escape. Which is what he needs Sonic for, hence the kidnapping of Sally and Bunnie. Also, King Acorn is there too. When everyone escapes, complications ensue.

When it comes to Sonic’s rogue gallery, at this point in time, there wasn't much. Sure, “SatAM” had stand alone quasi-adversaries like Lazaar and Griff. And there were henchmen like Metal Sonic, Scratch and Grounder, and Snively around. But, mostly, Robotnik was the only “Sonic” baddie that mattered at the time. Which is why it was cool when “SatAM” introduced Naugus. While he’s probably Sonic’s second most important villain in the comics, Naugus is actually something of an ally in this first appearance. He’s only interested in escaping the Void and torturing Robotnik here.

Yet the dude is obviously a creep. Michael Bell’s voice performance is raspy and conceited. The pure glee he takes with humiliating Robotnik, morphing his head into various animals and making him debase himself, is a little unnerving. (Which pulls off the unusual feat of making the audience feel bad for the show’s primary villain.) And he clearly has no respect for other people’s boundaries, with the way he manipulates Sonic, Sally and Bunnie both through subterfuge and flat-out mind control. Not to mention his tendency to crystallize people at the drop of a hat. While “the enemy of my enemy is my friend” is a valid principal, it’s clear Naugus is nobody’s friends. He can't be trusted, is openly sadistic, and clearly has no problem hurting others to further his own plans. I honestly wish comic book Naugus had been as creepy as his SatAM counterpart more often.

While that stuff is really cool and fun, “The Void” is most valuable because of its emotional aspect. Halfway through the episode, Sally is reunited with her father within the Void. While the reunion during the “Blast to the Past” two-parter was disappointingly cut short, here it forms a crucial part of the episode. Sally is brought to tears when she sees her dad, the two hugging each other for a while. Kath Soucie continues to summon a great deal of heartbreaking sincerity in her line-readings. It continues to amaze me that this cartoon targeted towards six year old boys made room for such vulnerability.

This is further built upon during the by-now customary “there must be losses” epilogue. Sally is crestfallen that she came so close to rescuing her dad, only to have him wretched away from her again. Sonic tells her to look on the bright side, as the King provided them a list of all the existent Freedom Fighter teams and they rescued Ari. This is obviously plot important information but the scenes of Sonic making Sally feel better are far more important from an emotional perspective.

Another surprise delight of “The Void” is the relationship that forms between Sonic and Nicole. Sonic and his girlfriend's personal handheld computer haven't interacted much before this point, since Nicole is more prop than character most of the time. After Naugus steals Sally and Bunnie, Sonic tries to get answers out of the computer, leading to him threatening her into speaking more clearly. This is more charming than it sounds. Nicole ends up acting like the straight-woman to Sonic's totally rad 'tude. This adds a lot of deadpan humor to the proceedings – Nicole's robot voice is perfect for delivering dryly humorous comebacks – and pays off fantastically in the final scene.

If “The Void” has a serious flaw, it's the somewhat shaky magic at its center. The episode concludes rather abruptly. After a few hours, Naugus and the King both begin to turn to crystal. An explanation – that they've been in the Void too long and can't exist outside it now – is quickly tossed out there. This feels rather anticlimatic, seemingly a way to keep the story arc of Sally searching for her Dad going. Really, the episode just comes to a stop, without much of a proper conclusion. If it seems the Void's effects are inescapable, that somehow also isn't the case. Sonic's speed is enough to for him to zip in and out of the other dimension. I guess the lesson here is... Magic can do anything but Sonic's speed can do more of anything.

“The Void” is an important episode for another reason. As far as “SatAM’s” relationship with the Archie “Sonic” comic goes, this is a very pivotal half-hour. The idea of King Acorn being held hostage in another dimension, turning into crystal when brought back to Mobius, and Naugus seeking revenge on those that banished him would form long-running story arcs in the comic. While most of the crazy bullshit the comic was built on came solely from the Archie staff’s deranged minds, “The Void” would provide material that the book would draw from for literal years. Which attest to the deep ideas contained here.

Even if the plot comes to a sudden halt, instead of a natural end, “The Void” is still easily among season two's strongest episodes. (It's probably no coincidence then that the wacky comic relief of Antoine and Dulcy is nowhere to be seen here.) Unlike “Dulcy,” where the creative ideas were out-of-control, the episode has enough interesting ideas to be fascinating without getting sloppy. As a long-time “Sonic” nerd, the amount of stuff this episode contributes to the overall lore makes it a high point too. Most importantly, the emotional core is never overlooked. For all these reasons and more, “The Void” is probably my favorite of the second season so far. [8/10]