Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog, Episode 1.29: Robotnik Jr.

Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog, Episode 1.29: Robotnik Jr.

Original Air Date: October 22nd, 1993

We're thirty-six reviews into this thing and I haven't once mentioned Bohbot Entertainment. That's the company that syndicated "Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog" during its original nineties US run. Their logo – the name of the company on a sparkling marquee flashing across the screen – used to proceed every "AoStH" episode. I had managed to forget about this totally, because most copies of the show on the internet no longer feature this logo. However, for whatever reason, the version of "Robotnik Jr." I just watched does feature the Bohbot Entertainment logo. And it caused a wave of nostalgia to wash over me. 

Turns out, Bohbot distributed a number of garbage and not-so-garbage shows I watched as a kid. For every minor cult classic they had a hand in – like "Mighty Max," "Jumanji," or "Extreme Ghostbusters" – they also released a totally forgotten trash show like "Skysurfer Strike Force" or "Princess Gwenevere and the Jewel Riders." Nevertheless, I do recall their block of action cartoons, it aired on Sunday morning around here, with some fondness. That's how I saw "Double Dragons," "Ultraforce," "King Arthur and the Knights of Justice," "Street Sharks," "Extreme Dinosaurs" and many more. None of these shows were that good but they distracted me for a few hours from my depressing childhood. While I'm certain I saw the Bohbot logo attached to many shows, "Sonic" is the one I most associate it with. So its presence triggers some specific recollections in me. 

Sorry for that rambling, unrelated introduction. Let's get on with the actual review. After another disappointing attempt from Scratch and Grounder to catch Sonic, involving the unfortunately named "Super Sonic Sucking Ray," Robotnik decides to build better help. He makes a son, a small robotic duplicate, that he dubs Robotnik Jr. A smart-ass juvenile delinquent, Junior is a chip off the old block and helps in the attempts to smash Sonic. However, after the hedgehog saves him from a jealous Scratch and Grounder, Junior has a change of heart. 

Because of the fucked-up order these aired in, we've already met post-reform Junior. Considering how low-key fascinating Robotnik's disturbing relationship with his own mother is, I was really hoping we'd get a glimpse of something similar in his relationship with his robotic son. Instead, the episode turns the doctor and his quasi-offspring into a parody of traditional father/son bonding. Whenever Junior acts out, via spray painting his dad's ass or pelting him with spitballs, Robotnik is not annoyed but proud. When Junior hot wires his Egg-O-Matic, he's overwhelmed with glee. Their camping trip involves asphalting a park. It's only when Junior begins spending time with goody-goody Sonic that dad gets concerned, an admittedly pretty funny spin on the old "hanging out with the wrong crowd" worry. These reversals aren't exactly biting parodies of the hang-ups of male parenting but they are cleverer than what I expected. 

Mildly interesting as their relationship is, the episode still can't make Junior that compelling a character. When being a little shit around his dad, he's just a little shit and no more interesting than any of the other minor villains in this show. His change-of-heart could've provided some weight, a sudden moral awakening at dad's evil acts. Instead, Sonic rescues Junior from Scratch and Grounder and, in the next scene, he's as good as he once was bad. Like a switch was flipped. Then again, what can we expect from a twenty-one minute cartoon that has to pack in twenty lame gags and a moral? ("Peer pressure is bad" being that moral, by the way.)

I wish there was more focus on Scratch and Grounder's jealousy of Junior. It's already established that the two bots see Robotnik as their dad and are desperate to receive his approval. When Junior comes along, he's immediately loved and accepted, no matter how shitty his behavior is. That must enraged Scratch and Grounder, who have had to struggle to get even a nod from their "dad." It makes absolute sense that they'd try and kill Junior by kicking him into a cement mixer. Yet the episode never focuses on their feelings or the ramifications of their actions. I mean, no shit. Fratricide is too dark for any kids show and this is a little-to-no-effort expended comedy program. But I was hoping "AoStH" would accidentally stumble onto something interesting there. No dice. 

Even though it's not that good, this episode did make me laugh twice. At one point, there's a sudden scene transition involving Robotnik's mustache spinning around the screen. That caught me off-guard. Robotnik switching gears suddenly from "let's kill Sonic" to "let's go camping" also got a snort out of me. Of minor historical interest is the scene were Sonic has to inhale bubbles underwater to keep from drowning, an element taken from the game. This occurs in close vicinity to the word "labyrinth," so it's another likely reference to the first game's infamous aquatic stage. (Sonic doesn't swim in this episode, instead super-spinning through the water. Doesn't count!) The "Sonic Sez" also features Sonic eating a hot dog with no chili, a most disturbing sight indeed. 

For those brief moments of amusement, "Robotnik Jr." gets a [6/10], even if it probably deserves a five instead.