Sonic X, Episode 2.22: The Volcanic Venture

Sonic X, Episode 2.22: The Volcanic Venture

Japanese Title: Sonic Versus the Underground Monster

Japanese Air Date: February 29th, 2004

U.S. Air Date: March 15th, 2005

"The Volcanic Venture" picks up right where "Sonic X" left off, with Sonic and the gang hanging out on the island above the Earth's Bellybutton. (A very silly phrase they use every two minutes in this episode.) Eggman and his robots have travelled inside the island's volcano. After Mr. Tanaka accidentally uncovers some Murasian treasure, the Sonic team becomes certain Murasia is inside the island. They take chase after Eggman and soon uncover an underground world. The place is full of danger, such as giant monsters and an impending volcanic explosion. 

The first half of this two-parter definitely felt like it stuck Sonic and friends into a story that didn't have much to do with them. This disconnect became really obvious in the second half, when the show turned into an extended fight between two sci-fi super-ships. "The Volcanic Venture" still feels like weird fanfiction, that randomly drops Sonic and the gang into an otherwise unrelated plot. Yet it does a slightly better job of blending the Sega crew with a traditional "lost world" story line. The usual "Sonic X" cast members are foreground more, even if the episode still largely plays like a wacky fusion of "Atragon" and "Journey to the Center of the Earth."

In fact, I suspect the hardcore "Sonic" video game fans probably really enjoy this episode. Largely because Sonic, Knuckles, and Rouge are the main characters in this time. A long portion of this episode is devoted to the three of them digging through the volcanic caverns to the hidden civilization underneath. We get some fun character interactions here. Like Sonic spin-dashing into a wall, only to be told that he really shouldn't do that in a volcanic. Or Knuckles impressing everyone by knowing what glow-in-the-dark moss is... Before the other two wander off in disinterest. Naturally, there's a lot of Rouge teasing and flirting with Knuckles too, which is always fun to watch. I especially like how Rouge has no plans to journey under the island before someone discovers a massive gemstone, after which she quickly changes her mind. That gag pays off in a funny way too, at the end. 

Also in my last review, I expressed some disappointment that "Sonic X" did a Toho homage without throwing in a kaiju. Well, I spoke too soon because this episode has two kaiju... Though maybe not the ones you are expecting. The "Atragon" homage does not extend to a Manda lookalike appearing. Nor does a Godzilla facsimile show up, though Bokkun does shatter a statue of a T-Rex at one point. Instead, TMS just straight-up put Mothra and Moguera (the giant robot from "The Mysterians") into this cartoon. They've been slightly redesigned but the similarities are blatant. Mothra — the data card calls her "Mothmacin" — only chases Decoe and Bocoe around but Moguera — renamed "Mongroun" — gets a complete action scene at the end. As a fellow monster movie nerd, it's fun when totally unexpected references like these crop up.

You'd think a giant, fire-breathing robot covered in drills — this show really likes drills — would be enough to raise the stakes here. Yet "Sonic Versus the Underground Monster" also builds a time limit into its story. Ya see, the volcano nearly the entire episode takes place inside of is about to go off any minute now. The heroes have to stop Eggman's plot to trigger a chain reaction that will destroy the world, fight off Toho's 17th most popular monster, and get out this place before the entire thing explodes. Normally, a set-up like this would create a hell of a lot of suspense...

But this is "Sonic X" we're watching, so most of the episode is played for goofy comedy. Eggman does clarifies that he does indeed intend to destroy the surface world but he seems pretty casual about it. At one point, he calmly asks his robot minions to get him some lunch, while just typing away on this laptop. That leads to a goofy scene of Becoe and Docoe foraging for food, considering eating a slug, and mistaking Mothra's antenna for a massive apple. The robotic duo gets most of the laughs here, such as an inspired gag when they attempt to combine into a giant super-robot. Or their seemingly final deaths at the end being quickly retconned. There's also a bizarre moment where Tanaka attempts to have some alone time with Topaz, before he karate chops a rock in two for no apparent reason. I'm going with the theory that Tanaka has an unrequited crush on Topaz and she's just too nice to tell him that busty bats are more her type.

Once again, the focus on silly comedy may have an ulterior motive as well. The previous episode featured some pretty smooth animation but I guess TMS couldn't scrounge up some extra money for this one. The fight with Moguera is pretty underwhelming. The robot is given a tiny mouth that he shoots fire out of, which looks seriously silly. In general, the robot moves in a loose, awkward fashion. Sonic and Rouge mostly spin-dash and screw kick the giant machine, resulting in repetitive scenes of spinning blurs colliding with the threat. There's also an odd scene, of Chris falling down a tunnel, that is animated in CGI for some reason. 

Still, despite some pretty apparent flaws, I enjoyed this one. I'm too much of a nerd not to get a kick out of an episode where Sonic fights a C-list giant monster. Again, it's funny and unexpected that "Sonic X" would go in this direction eventually. But why not? It's not like any of the previous "Sonic" cartoons didn't go in weird digressions that had nothing to do with the source material as well. It's pretty much a tradition at this point! This doesn't rank among the show's most entertaining half-hours but it's far from bad too. [6/10]