Sonic X, Episode 3.04: An Enemy in Need

Sonic X, Episode 3.04: An Enemy in Need

Japanese Title: Dr. Eggman Joins the War!

U.S. Air Date: October 1st, 2005

Japanese Air Date: March 31st, 2020

I guess I was wrong when I supposed season three of "Sonic X" was going to have a "planet of the week" structure, as the next episode lingers on Planet Hydo a little longer. The grateful citizens of the world throw a celebratory parade for Sonic and the gang. Unbeknownst to our heroes, Dr. Eggman has arrived on the planet. Rouge — also on this journey — blackmails Bokkun into hatching a scheme for the doctor. He asks Knuckles to bring him the Chaos Emerald, promising that he only has good intentions. The gullible echidna falls for it and, when he tells his plan to Sonic, they point out it's an obviously terrible idea. A fight between Sonic and Knuckles ensues, with Eggman planning to steal the emerald while they're distracted... But Bokkun alerts everyone to the doctor's position, ruining his scheme. Before Rouge can perform her part of the plan, a Metarex machine attacks. Eggman attempts to fight the alien robot but is quickly defeated, forcing Sonic and the gang to save the day once again. 

If "Sonic X" is going to build an entire season around intergalactic adventures, they're going to have to show a little more imagination than what's on display in this episode. What we see of Hydo society —  which doesn't seem nearly as effected by their entire planet being flooded as they should — is uninspired. They throw a parade with floats based on very European looking boats. The only real insight we get into their culture is an obsession with tossing people into the air and some repetitive shots of them dancing. The Hydolians are not the only alien culture that seems very Earthly. The Metarex minion in this episode is Jumpee, a giant mechanical frog. How does the Metarex empire know what frogs are? 

Then again, the entire episode is pretty uninspired. "Sonic X," for the third goddamn time, returns to the idea of Eggman tricking Knuckles. The fandom perception of Knuckles started to shift during the "Adventure" era. With Shadow now filling the tough, shoot-first-ask-questions-later rival role that Knuckles occupied in the classic era, a different characterization of the echidna emerged: That of a strong but extremely dumb idiot. (This characterization would see its ultimate Flanderization in "Sonic Boom.") As someone used to the more complex Knuckles from the comics, I've always hated this. I assumed the first "Adventure" game revisiting Eggman fooling Knuckles again was responsible for this idea taking root. Now I'm starting to think "Sonic X" is the guilty party. Because Knuckles should really, really know better than to take Eggman at his word by now. Hard to like or root for this guy if he's so chronically a dumbass. 

The show returning to this well once more seems largely to be set-up for another idea the franchise has repeatedly hammered: Sonic and Knuckles fighting. I'm not opposed to these two homoerotically sparring with each other every once in a while. It's even pretty funny that the rest of the gang's reaction to this fight is to shrug and sit back and watch. They know Sonic and Knuckles just gotta work this out of their systems. But even the early Archie Comics found different reasons for Sonic and Knuckles to periodically bash each other's heads in. It doesn't help that the Sonic/Knuckles fight here is pretty listlessly animated, as is the entire episode. The movement is stiff and there's lots of reused animation. 

Something I was right about is Eggman largely becoming comic relief in a season with a more dangerous antagonist. Aside from the handful of times he's threaten to kill somebody or unleashed an eldritch abomination on a city, "Sonic X" has largely treated Eggman as a joke. That definitely continues here. There's a long sequence where he comically chases Bocoe and Decoe around the interior of his space ship with a big mallet. The quipping droids and their rotund boss also make several fourth wall breaks, joking about how their reoccurring characters on this show. By the end, when they're launched into the sky by the Metarex minion-of-the-week, I was getting serious Team Rocket vibes. These types of japes are not my favorite interpretation of Robotnik, as you've probably guessed. 

About the only cool thing Eggman does in this episode is climb inside a giant robot Bocoe and Decoe pilot when Jumpee attacks. The machine is human-shaped but boxy, with multiple special weapons (including a sword), and distinctive markings and colorations. That alone was giving me "Voltron" vibes, so I was not surprised to read the robot is another one of those homages "Sonic X" loves. The "Egg Mars" is a tribute to eighties super robot anime "Godmars," another show featuring heroes in colorful suits who pilot giant robots that then combine to form an even bigger robot. This nerdy reference is brief but still probably the most interesting thing about an uninspired action sequence, which features the Metarex goon once again being defeated by the Sonic Hammer. 

The sole bright spot of an underwhelming episode is, once again, Rouge. I don't know if Rouge wants the Chaos Emeralds just because they're shiny jewels or if she's working for someone else. Either way, her plan to play Sonic and Eggman against each other, while she sneaks in and furthers her own goals, is some real "Yojimbo" shit. I would gladly watch a whole series of Rouge just tricking being people and being a femme fatale, all in service of her own capricious needs. Though the specific way she blackmails Bokkun — by threatening to reveal the contents of a locket the little robot carries — is a little odd. I'm guessing there's, like, a picture of Ella or a pie or something in there. (For the furries reading this: That scene does feature a lingering shot of Rouge's mammalian cleavage, that 4Kids deemed Too Hot for the FoxBox and cut out of the dub.)

Season three started strong but hits its first roadblock with this one. I'm considering declaring this one a filler episode, though I guess Eggman revealing his presence to Sonic and the gang makes it important to the overall story. There's also a little more character development for Cosmo and Chris. Cosmo is shown to have a strong dislike for any conflict and Chris displays his growing ingenuity by thinking up a scheme to distract the bad guy.  The episode also has Amy repeatedly reference how much her butt hurts and even asking Cream to look at it, and that's pretty funny/weird/inappropriate. Aside from that, you could probably safely skip this one. [5/10]