Sonic the Hedgehog (1993), Episode 2.13: The Doomsday Project

Sonic the Hedgehog (1993), Episode 2.13: The Doomsday Project
Original Air Date: December 3, 1994

Here we are, you guys: The very last episode of “SatAM.” As production rolled through on season two of “Sonic,” the production team seemed pretty confident in the show's success. After all, the “Sonic” property was red hot at the time and “SatAM's” die hard fan following must have already been apparent, even back in 1994. Ben Hurst and the gang optimistically planned out for a third season. It was not to be, of course, and the show's abrupt conclusion – as much the fault of executive change-overs as middling ratings – has become part of the “SatAM” legend over the years. After all, something becomes a cult classic precisely because it's ahead of its time, too hip for the mainstream, and destined to resonate most with a small group of exceptionally passionate weirdos.

But I'm definitely getting ahead of myself. Let's talk about the actual plot of “The Doomsday Project.” After talking about it for most of the season, Robotnik is finally ready to launch his ultimate weapon, a week ahead of schedule. As foliage-exterminating Doomsday Pods filter out all over the planet, the Freedom Fighters go into emergency mode. Sally quickly brings together as many of the other groups as possible – including Ari's gang and Lupe's Wolf Pack – while attempting to infiltrate the Doomsday Project's central hub. Robotnik is ready for them though and most get captured. Sonic manages to escape but things still look grim for our heroes... Until they remember the Deep Power Stones.

Throughout my “SatAM” reviews, I've often commented on how often Ben Hurst's ambitions outstripped his resources. This is definitely evident in “The Doomsday Project.” You can tell Ben really wanted this to be a movie, or at least a two-parter. (There even seems to be a clear dividing point in the episode here, where Sonic escapes the Doomsday Project but the threat is still far from over.) A lot is squeezed into this twenty minute cartoon. New characters and weapons are introduced. Plot points that the show has been building on all season are paid off. So much is happening that it's a little hard to keep track of. I'm still not entirely certain what the purpose of a sequence where the Freedom Fighters drop little teddy bears in parachutes over the Doomsday Project is.

The use of the cast is a big cause of disappointment in “The Doomsday Project.” Most of the Freedom Fighters don't get much to do in the show's epic conclusion. Dulcy and Tails are only on-screen for a few minutes. Bunnie and Antoine go on the first mission into the Doomsday Project but sit out most of the episode, with Antoine mostly providing comic relief. The new and almost new additions get it even worst. Considering how beloved she is by the “Sonic” fandom, it's surprising Lupe has so little to do in “SatAM.” She's only in a few scenes here, which can also be said of Ari. We meet Polo and Dirk, the leaders of the Southern Freedom Fighters, but I'm not sure they even get any dialogue. For a show that was so much about being a team, it seems Sonic and Sally were repeatedly placed as the most important Freedom Fighters.

However, “The Doomsday Project” does bring many of the show's themes full circle in a satisfying way. The ecological subtext of “SatAM,” which largely took a backseat through the second season, makes a strong comeback in the finale. We finally find out what exactly the Doomsday Project does: It distributes pods all throughout the globe which fire beams that cause any living matter to immediately wither and die. It would seem Robotnik intends to destroy the entirety of the natural world, which he presumably plans to then replace with cold, heartless machinery. In turn, Rotor has designed water balloons that immediately eat through most metal or steel. (Don't think about the science behind that too much.) I don't know if the theme of “nature = good, industry = bad” could be anymore explicit than that. The bad guy wants to kill everything green and organic, the good guys want to get rid of everything cold and factory-made.

This episode also focuses in on why Robotnik so often grabs the Villain Ball. At one point, Sonic, Sally, Bunnie and Antoine – a good chunk of the main Freedom Fighters – are within the Doomsday building. Capturing and crushing all of these guys would be a huge win for Robotnik. Instead, he lets every one go except for Sonic. But there's actually a good reason for this. Robotnik is so obsessed with personally defeating Sonic, that it blinds him to anything else. He drops everything to capture the hedgehog and sticks him in a Roboticizer designed specifically to roboticize him. That's actually a good reason to explain why Robotnik, supposed genius, did so much dumb shit throughout this show. Sonic enters the picture and he just looses all sense of reason.

Another element that suggests “The Doomsday Project” was somewhat rushed in its writing is how sloppy the resolution is. Twice in this episode, what is meant to be the grand finale, characters whip out a magical object that quickly gets them out of their jam. First, Sonic produces three Power Rings to let him escape the supposedly Sonic-proof Roboticizer. Secondly, Sonic and Sally use the Deep Power Stones to destroy the Doosmday Project. What makes that last one especially insulting is that Sonic easily sneaks into Robotropolis to nab the second stone, which Robotnik just has lying around, totally unguarded.

See, wouldn't it have been a lot more interesting if sneaking in and nabbing that stone was the focal point of a second episode? I guess that is what happens when the higher-ups demand you start inserting stupid bullshit like “Ro-Becca” into a season. Your master plan for a satisfying season-long arc gets interrupted. Still, it is seriously disappointing that, after two seasons of watching the heroes struggle against Robotnik, he is defeated with a magical relic that was introduced literally the episode before. It rings of a phony deus ex machina and that is something from the show's earlier episodes that I really wish it hadn't returned to here. I would much rather have seen the Freedom Fighters put their heads together and think of some non-magical way to defeat their adversary's greatest weapon.

That is not the only way the episode's big finale is disappointing. Once again, “SatAM” is let down by DiC's limited animation budget. The action throughout this episode is a bit odd looking. After Sonic activates the three Power Rings to escape his personal Roboticizer, the glass tube levitates up into the air. That was... Weird. Also weird: The glowing red drones, that resembles both bullets and Robotnik's head, that chase Sonic not long after he enters the Doomsday building.

Weirder yet is how the climatic sequence is animated. After activating the Power Stones, Sonic and Sally rush around the Doomsday Project. What follows is a very repetitive and jarringly edited series of flashing images. We cut quickly between Sonic and Sally flying around, people fleeing the building, Robotnik screaming in defeat, and some explosions. This was definitely an example of DiC just not having the money needed to pull off a properly thrilling big finish. Once again, you get the feeling that Ben Hurst was writing an epic “Sonic” motion picture here, not an extremely humble made-for-television cartoon.

With all the bullshit I'm giving it, you probably think I don't like “The Doomsday Project.” It's still not a bad episode because, even with all the double-stuffed plotting and underwhelming resolutions, it still remembers the reason why fans love this show so much: The characters and their interactions. In particular, “The Doomsday Project” focuses in on Sonic and Sally's romance in a very funny, amusingly horny way. Sally seems to get a real thrill out of going Super Saiyan with the Deep Power Stones. She is visibly buzzed afterwards and, with Kath Soucie doing her most seductive voice, goes in for a kiss. She's so obviously aroused that it even freaks Sonic out a little, who has to flee before this kid's cartoon gets decidedly not-PG rated. They still smooch before the episode ends, the event causing literal sparks.

Even with everything that happens in this episode, even with it being the unintended finale for the entire series, that is not what people remember the most about “The Doomsday Project.” No, it's that cliffhanger ending that drove fandom speculation and obsession for years to come. Nowadays, we all know who those starring red eyes where meant to belong to. It's pretty obviously Naugus – even as a kid, I assumed as much – though that didn't stop overeager “Sonic” nerds from hoping it was Metal Sonic or Knuckles. Yet there's no denying that it is one hell of image to go out on. Robotnik is seemingly dead, Snively has finally usurped his throne, but something more dangerous glares from the darkness, with sinister red eyes... Yeah, that's definitely a moment people are going to remember.

Combined with the show's subsequent cancellation, I sometimes wonder if the intrigue of that final image isn't more responsible for the cult of “SatAM” than anything else. After all, if the show had ended with Robotnik defeated and the Freedom Fighters victorious, fans would have a far more definite sense of closure. Yes, there were always going to be people who wanted more and the show certainly left plenty of questions to answer. Yet the series ending on such an intentionally vague and mysterious point, that was bound to drive conversation for years to come. Which, of course, it did. Would we even be talking about “SatAM” without that cliffhanger? Well, yeah, I would, because I'm a huge fucking nerd. But I think the mystery of that final shot kept the fire burning for a lot longer than it otherwise would have.

I still have  a lot more thoughts about “SatAM” as an overall entity but I'll save those for another day. Just for right now, I'll say that “The Doomsday Project” is a somewhat disappointing final episode that is still so deeply emblematic of the crazy ambition, drive, and depth of personality that made this show so special in the first place. [6/10]