Sonic Boom, Episode 2.06: Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Worse-er

Sonic Boom, Episode 2.06: Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Worse-er

Original Air Date: December 17th, 2016

For nearly two decades, the Archie "Sonic the Hedgehog" comic operated practically in a vacuum. The comic promoted the games, of course, but it was a rare occurrence that other components of the "Sonic" multi-media franchise acknowledged the book's existence. That cover collection in the one GameCube compilation was honestly a huge surprise. The idea of talent crossing over from the comics to other mediums was practically unheard of. I think this has less to do with any perceived quality of Archie's crew and more to do with how insular the comic industry is. 

It was only within the last few years of the book's run that this started to change. Super-talented bastard Tyson Hesse would quickly ascend through the ranks, starting out as an Archie artist (and a fan artist/sprite comic fiend before that) before working on the games and movies. Ian Flynn, in his absolute zeal to conquer the entire "Sonic" landscape, would be the first talent to cross the comic/television barrier. His work on Archie's "Sonic Boom" tie-in book must've impressed the actual show runners. Flynn would pen two episodes in "Boom's" second season, the first of which was "Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Worse-er." 

The episode begins with a typical scenario: Sonic and Tails are on the beach, outrunning Eggman's latest machine. (A robot with an enormous vacuum tube connected to it, of course.) The suction managed to trap Sonic for roughly twenty seconds, a huge success on Eggman's behalf. This leads to a friendly wager being made between Sonic and Tails. Tails, assuming himself to be even craftier than Eggman, believes he can successfully capture Sonic. Sonic, naturally, believes he's too fast for that. This leads to Tails inventing a number of wacky booby traps and scenarios to snatch Sonic, the situation quickly escalating... And Eggman soon realizing he can take advantage of it. 

Flynn's script here exploits an easily related-to phenomenon: The masculine instinct to take a friendly contest too far. Now, I don't like to generalize. Not all males are the same and this is obviously true of myself, an atypical dude in so many ways. Yet it is a bit of an honest stereotype to characterize men as proud. It's part of our culture. Young men, in order to establish their independence as masculine entities, will often challenge each other. Because we no longer live in simian social castes – I mean, not literally anyway – this doesn't often manifest as rumbling over food, mates, and leadership. (Though it can and does.) Instead, this masculine desire to prove yourself the very best, like no one ever was, takes the form of meaningless contests and shows of bravado. Who can make the most home runs? Whose car is the fastest? Who is better at this video game? Who can eat the most chicken nuggets without puking? That kind of shit. 

I think this is human nature, honestly, and can even be healthy in establishing boundaries and such. But too often, guys don't outgrow this need to repeatedly assert their dominance, leading to grown-ass men having childish dick-measuring contests. (Hopefully not literally.) Our culture prioritizes toughness and success in males so much that guys are constantly pushed to "prove" themselves in the most ridiculous ways, leading to otherwise friendly contests going way too fucking far. That's the commonly understood idea that is nicely exploited here for eleven minutes of amusing frivolity. I know I've similarly let light-hearted competitions escalated to dumb-ass levels. 

This set-up raises a, perhaps, more pressing question: Would Sonic the Hedgehog be a good friend? I know this franchise has repeatedly emphasized that standing up for his friends is what drives Sonic and all that. Yet the version of the character that first emerged in the early nineties was defined by 'tude, above all else. He had catchphrases and went fast and had a hot girlfriend and exclusively ate fast food. This element is still present in the modern iterations of the characters, largely in his cockiness. Since "Boom" exaggerates these elements for comedic effect, it often presents Sonic as kind of an insufferable braggart with an ever-present snarky side. There are times throughout this episode were Sonic is unbearably condescending to Tails and his other pals, such as when he's "grading" Tails' traps or repeating his puns to Amy. Would you actually want to be friends with a braggy super-fast hedgehog with a sarcastic one-liner at the ready at all times? I mean, probably, but it would get old fast. 

This is not really the point of the episode. You know me, I just have to extrapolate wildly. Instead, the episode uses the increasingly-less-friendly rivalry between Sonic and Tails to further two goals. The first of which is an escalating absurdity. Tails' traps to catch Sonic get goofier as the episode progresses. A simple chili-dog-under-a-cage trap soon leads to a booby-trapped hammock, ensnaring barrels, and motorized boulders. Tails actually more-or-less succeeds by setting a trap on a frozen over lake, playing on Sonic's inability to swim in a way Eggman probably should have by now. The Rube Goldberg-esque mechanism that activates this scenario is also an unusually elaborately animated moment, which I appreciated. 

The other point is the one that most obviously marks this as the work of Ian Flynn. If I were to identify one point as the uniting thesis of Flynn's entire body-of-work, it would be that friendships make us stronger. Having people we care about in our lives, that are there to support us through adversity, makes us better, more fully formed people. You see this theme clearly in pretty much all of Flynn's Scourge the Hedgehog stories as well as countless tales involving Sonic's relationship with the Freedom Fighters and the Restoration. It's not independence or saving the world that Sonic fights for so much as it is protecting the friends and loved ones he cares about. Even sourpusses like Shadow and Whisper the Wolf would learn this throughout Flynn's various comics. It's definitely present in "Sonic Frontiers" too. 

And so, Sonic and Tails eventually get over their petty conflict in "Anything You Can Do..." and reunite to protect each other. This extends to the other members of Team Boom, who where increasingly isolated by Sonic and Tails' dumbass contest. The power of friendship comes through and saved the day once again. I would've liked it if this episode focused in humbling Sonic a little more – which is instead brushed off casually in the last scene – but it's solid. 

The other element that most marks this as Flynn's work is some amusingly meta dialogue. That's a gag he relied on a lot in his "Boom" comics, so it's not surprising it resurfaced here. Sonic makes a reference to "the audience" early on while Eggman refers to Tails' slingshot hammock contraption as "so first season." Eggman's dialogue probably made me laugh the most here. A meandering conversation about raisins in chocolate or whether "hedgehog-sickle" is too confusing an insult made me reliably chuckle. As did his concluding insistence that he actually won the day. 

The result is an amicably goofy episode which makes good use of its characters and their dynamic. Hey, I guess this Ian Flynn guy is pretty good at writing about blue hedgehogs after all. [7/10]