Sonic X, Episode 1.02: Sonic to the Rescue

Sonic X, Episode 1.02: Sonic to the Rescue

Japanese Title: Infiltrate! Area 99

Japanese Air Date: April 13th, 2003

U.S. Air Date: September 13th, 2003

Just in case you forgot what happened last time, the second episode of "Sonic X" literally begins with the final scene from the first episode. After Chris Thorndyke pulls Sonic out of his pool, he decides to hang around in the enormous mansion the kid lives in. As Chris and his scientist grandpa Chuck try to figure out where the four-foot-tall blue hedgehog came from, Sonic sees Cream on the news. Chuck learns Cream and Cheese have been captured by the government and taken to Area 99, a military research facility. Sonic breaks in and rescues his little buddies but is quickly pinned down. That's when Tails, who has also landed on Earth, appears to save his ass. The celebration over the reunion is short-lived, as the heroes quickly deduce Eggman must have been teleported to Earth too. 

Sonic, as a character, seems to swing between two poles. There's the characterization, generally favored by newer interpretations, that Sonic may be free as the wind but he's always there to help his friends. Meanwhile, there's the idea – more prominent in the nineties – that Sonic's defining attribute is his 'tude. He's a smart-ass, a rebel, and almost insufferably kewl. Being a child of the nineties, I'm partial to the latter idea. I've been someone disappointed, over the years, to see Sonic's snark downplayed a little bit in newer releases. 

Even though "Sonic X" was the Sonic for New Millennia, I'm happy see the show maintained some of that trademark smarm. This Sonic is brass and impulsive, running off to steal some tacos after Chris tries to feed him cat food. After humiliating policemen in the first episode, the second one sees Sonic effortlessly sneaking into an Area 51-style compound. This hedgehog clearly cares not for authority. Also, at one point, Sonic audibly says the word "shit" in English. The subtitles make no attempt to censor this swear. Sonic says shit! In an official approved-by-Sega product! Absolutely amazing. That made my day.

Even though this episode has Sonic reuniting with some of his trademark friends, a good chunk of the runtime is devoted to introducing Chris Thorndyke. Even the biggest "Sonic X" fan seems to acknowledge that Chris is fucking annoying, an opinion the Archie Comic version of this show did not dissuade me from. We immediately get the impression that Chris is profoundly lonely. His mom – a literal movie star – and his dad, whose profession is thus far undisclosed, are never around. Which is fine. All kids get lonely, even poor little rich boys.

Yet the insistence with which Chris claims Sonic as his friends is a little... clingly. After knowing each other for a few hours, Chris seems convinced Sonic is his BFF. He gets upset when the hedgehog runs off. Later in the episode, Chris scolds the hedgehog for his recklessness. Which, again, seems a tad much considering Sonic is fifteen, Chris is a child, and they haven't even known each other for a day. In the same breath, Chris immediately decides Tails and Cream are also going to be his friends. We get it, this kid is starved for companionship. But maybe this isn't the best way to endear a new character to the audience. 

"Infiltrate! Area 99" is also the de-facto introductions of Cream and Cheese, after their cameo appearances in the first episode. The characters were still new additions to the "Sonic" franchise at this point, having only debuted in "Sonic Advance 2" the previous December. (Or March, for U.S. fans.) I've always been pretty indifferent to Cream. She's cute, I guess, but her overwhelming moe-ness is slightly irritating to me. "Sonic X" seems to emphasize her incredible politeness and child-like vulnerability the most, as she's mostly a damsel for Sonic to rescue and constantly apologizes for everything. Whether the show is going to actually do anything with her, I'll discover soon enough. 

The action-packed quality of "Sonic X's" first episode, and the accompanying high quality animation, was clearly meant to make a positive first impression on viewers. The second installment has nothing that impressive. In fact, the action is pretty mellow here. I like the bit where Sonic runs around the security cameras, literally just when they turn the other direction. The back half of the episode is heavy on lasers, Sonic using the laser mounted camera against each other. A moment near the end, where the staircase Sonic and Cream are standing on is slowly whittled away by lasers, is also mildly neat. Nothing as impressive as the robot-smashing in episode one but at least the action is still being taken completely seriously. 

Aside from my feelings, or lack thereof, towards Chris and Cream, my only really complaint about "Sonic to the Rescue" is the end of the second act. Tails saves the day with tiny, microchip-laden paper airplanes that fuck-up Area 99's electrical systems. How he deployed these machines, much less how he got them in the base or how they work, is never detailed. Neither is how he found Area 99 or knew that Sonic was there. Tails almost literally drops out of the sky to save the day, which feels a tad sloppy. A brief scene establishing he was on Earth, or a short exchange of dialogue where he shows how he deduced this information, wouldn't have hurt. 

I still mostly enjoyed this one, even if it's clearly a step-down from the first episode. If nothing else, "Sonic X" has a good grasp on its title character and that's got to count for something. Whether the supporting cast will grow on me or continue to annoy me is something I'll discover shortly. Also, and I can not emphasize this enough, Sonic says "shit" here. That alone deserves a recommendation. [6.5/10]