Chao Tales

Chao Tales

Original Release Date: April 3rd, 2025

I thought I was done talking about miscellaneous "Sonic the Hedgehog" animation but then Sega had to go and draw my attention to something I didn't know previously existed. Here in 2025, if the last few months of reviews haven't made it clear, "Sonic the Hedgehog" exists as much as a social media brand as a video game franchise. The games, the comics, the cartoons, the movies, the officially licensed SquishMellows and everything else is almost secondary to the actual goal of the series these days: To make sure people, young and old and younger and older yet, never forget about Sonic the Hedgehog. Every proponent of the blue hedgehog's existence now has no further goal than to propagate itself. Social media is where we all spend a large part of our lives now, the digital town square becoming just as real as the actual communities we live in. (Maybe more, in some cases.) This means "Sonic the Hedgehog," as a brand, must have a social media presence. I would say Sega's ability to infiltrate these spaces is the main reason the blue hedgehog stock has risen a lot in the last decade or so. It is not enough for Sonic to only be a new video game release once or twice a year. A monthly comic, a cartoon or TV show or movie every few years, will not suffice. To make sure somebody, somewhere, is always talking about Sonic the Hedgehog means new stuff arriving across multiple different platforms at a machine gun pace. 

This is my long-winded way of saying that uploading little animations and skits and updates to YouTube, Twitter, TikTok and whatever else is how this series stays alive in today's world. Almost everything I've discussed in this loosely linked retrospective of "Sonic" animation left-overs has been part of this new wave of brand awareness. Previously, I looked a little at Sega of Japan trying their hand at breaking into the micro-video format that is so popular online these days with "Sonic & Friends." More recently, the American branch has done something similar. Little one-minute long pieces of animation entitled "Chao Tales" started popping up on the official "Sonic" channels on any platform that supports short video contents. "Chao Tales" is the first piece of traditionally animated "Sonic" media produced exclusively for this format, evident by each episode originally being uploaded in the narrow aspect ratio common to such things. Yes, "Chao Tales" has the dubious distinction of being the first drawn "Sonic" thing designed to be viewed in Portrait Mode. What a time to be alive. Presumably for the benefit of old foggies like me, all eight episodes were recently uploaded to Youtube in glorious wide-screen, so I can trick myself into thinking I'm watching an actual TV show and not a fuckin' Instagram reel. 

Yes, once again, I am forced to talk about Chao, those little water drop shaped baby things that everybody but me loves. Every two episodes of "Chao Tales" is set in a different season, beginning in spring and ending in the winter. It depicts Sonic discovering and then visiting a peaceful Chao garden in the woods, whenever he feels like it, I guess. Among the residents is a Shadow Chao that the Sonic Wiki describes as "bossy," "a trickster," "greedy," prideful and prone to shenanigans. As Sonic chills with these squishy entities, playing music and sharing apples and bringing animal friends, he helps them do the thing their lives seemingly revolve around: The rearing of yet more Chao eggs. That dovetails nicely with, in the winter, Eggman choosing this patch of trees for deforestation, forcing Sonic to team up with the Chao and defend their home. 

Ya wanna know what the main question I had after watching all eight parts of "Chao Tales" was?: Why is the Shadow Chao such an asshole? In the first few bits of animation that make up this series, the Shadow Chao tries to break an unhatched egg, steals food from his fellow baby-ish brethren, hordes magical upgrades from the visiting animals, and attempts to disrupt their musical frolic. During a race and a training session, the Chao shows a need to prove himself better than the other critters. This causes me to ponder on the mental development of these weird little fluff creatures. When you see a little kid in a pre-school class or whatever acting this way – stealing, starting fights, being a general prick to the other children – the natural assumption is that there's trouble at home. His or her parents are abusive, neglectful, argumentative or overly indulging. Some kids are natural troublemakers, sure. Many of them have neurological patterns, that probably won't be diagnosed until later in life, that make them prone to impulsive or antisocial behavior. I fall squarely on the nurture side of this ages-long debate. In my experience, in my own life and when observing other people's kids, I believe most behavior is learned behavior. And kids, especially at that age, learn most everything they know from their parents. This is why my older half-sister told her kindergarten teacher, when everyone in class was prompted to share Mommy and Daddy's real names, that our mother's name was "Bitch." That's what her dad – not my dad, a different asshole – most frequently called our mom.

The point I'm making is: Most problem children don't act that way for no reason. To quote the slaves in Willy Wonka's factory: You know exactly who to blame, the mother and the faaaathheerrrrr. Which brings me to the obvious, confusing point: Chao don't have parents. Eggs appear asexually, seemingly through some kind of magical ritual. They do change and react to the people they interact with and how they are treated. The implication does seem to be that this is the first time Sonic has met these Chao, leading one to wonder if they've had any contact with outside life at all. My limited knowledge of Chao biology makes me believe that a Shadow Chao has to have some sort of contact with Shadow, inheriting aspects of his personality somehow. There have been multiple Shadow Chao across the "Sonic" franchise though. Are we to assume that Shadow has personally rubbed up against every Shadow Chao around? I guess being a mini-me of Shadow might explain why this little guy is such a jerk. However, I remain left with many questions about how any of this works, much less how these drippy Pokémon things cognitively develop. I also think they live forever but never age out of the toddler stage, so maybe they don't develop at all. Maybe it's a stupid video game cartoon and I shouldn't think this hard about it. 

Describing this badly behaved Chao as "a trickster" suggests he's some sort of Anansi figure. A confident con man who gets one over on people from time to time but is always humbled in the end. You really only see this in one of the episodes, the third installment where the Shadow Chao tries to absorb so many features and powers from the surrounding animals that he eventually collapses under the weight of all his new upgrades. Otherwise, the moral here is much more general. Sonic is teaching the kids to share, to play fair in contests, to stand up for themselves and rely on each other. By the end, the idea goes, we are supposed to like the little goth Chao and he'll no longer be an asshole but a valued member of his community. Because these cartoons are all a minute long, we never get much of a sense of character development. In fact, it feels like most of the personal growth happens off-screen, in between installments. The leap between this guy being a selfish, destructive little gremlin in the first episode and a brave little hero in the last feels unearned. 

Evan Stanley directed this entire series, following a definite trend in her association with the "Sonic" franchise of being fond of the tiny freak babies. Every "Sonic" fan writer/artist that has graduate to officially working on the series has left their own marks, giving you an idea of what their personal vision for the speedy hedgehog franchise is. Tyson Hesse's cartoons and comics represent his absurd sense of humor, a simpler and wackier understanding of the characters, and lots of frenetic action. Ian Flynn is obsessed with backstory and history, loving to dig up obscure tidbits he can stitch into more of a narrative whole. He fleshes out the world and tends to flesh out the characters too, probably being the best at actually giving these video game mascots depth. "Chao Tales" perhaps gives us the clearest idea of what Evan Stanley wants "Sonic" to be. For most of the eight episodes, this is an exceptionally laid back story. Sonic spends more time napping and chilling in a tree than he does fighting supervillains over the eight minutes or so. The conflict is the stuff of schoolyard playgrounds, of little kid-like figures having low stake interactions in which they ultimately learn a tidy lesson that can be applied to other situations in their lives. Sonic himself feels oddly static in "Chao Tales." He's treated like a mentor figure, idealized and far off, ultimately unknowable. Meanwhile, the Chao have their little misunderstandings and problems but they can all work out it. It reminds me of Surge venting her personal problems at Sonic in one IDW issue, while trying to kill him, only for the tenrec to accepted onto the team shortly afterwards. 

The impression I get is that Stanley is in-love with the aesthetics of "Sonic" as a franchise. Ultimately, she thinks of this hedgehog's world as an idealized one, with a status quo of Eden-esque tranquility. Except, obviously, this is also an action series and anime fight scenes must occur. These two needs run into each other in the last two episodes, when Eggman appears to chop down the forest, forcing Sonic and his new friends into action. The result is "Chao Tales" feels like a totally relaxed environment up until it suddenly isn't. This climax is narratively sound, following a structure that should work. The Shadow Chao starts out as one thing, experiences events that change him, and come out on the other side as something else. He's a jerk at the beginning and a hero at the end, fighting alongside Sonic. Something about the execution feels hollow though, too cutesy, too vague. Mechanical when it should be personable. 

All throughout "Chao Tales," I couldn't help but mentally compare it to "Sonic & Friends," the previous attempts to give these characters a home on a short-form video sight. The CGI, Japanese show is ultimately mindless drivel, bright sounds and noises that convey nothing of significance at all. Whenever it did pause to resemble a story, it felt like the kind of plots that those chat-bots CEOs are burning down the planet for could excrete. Obviously, "Chao Tales" is better than that. It's made with traditional animation, so it looks far more appealing than the dead-eyed digital homunculi of the TikTok show. It's not as detailed, smooth, energetic, or beautiful as "Sonic Mania Adventures" or the "Sonic Superstars" cartoon Stanley previously did. However, the colors are bright and warm. The characters move in mostly expressive and fluid ways. The environments and models are charming and likable. I would say "Chao Tales" looks like a really good episode of "Sonic X," like one of the higher budget moments stretched out for eight relative minutes.  

Obviously, I much prefer this over "Sonic & Friends." There's an actual sense of art and soul put into this. The fact that I can tell something about Evan Stanley from watching this proves it has more value than the meaningless noises and distraction that is the other series. However, I can't beat the impression that "Chao Tales" is moving in a similar direction. It wants everything to simple and round and pleasant and cute and in a bite-sized package that can be easily consumed, without generating any unsettling thoughts or feelings in the consumer. That's not what I want "Sonic the Hedgehog" to be. It's entirely possible I'm thinking too hard about a cute little cartoon made to get some hearts or upvotes or likes or whatever. It's not bad, not totally artless, but it still feels like an attempt to push this franchise towards a rather boring place. Or maybe the ugly, naked merchandising opportunities that the Chao represent simply puts me in a bad mood. Eh. [6/10]

TailsTube #11 - A Meeting of the Minds

TailsTube #11 - A Meeting of the Minds

Original Release Date: March 27th, 2025

I am now all caught up with the "Sonic the Hedgehog" virtual YouTuber series "TailsTube" and I have this to ask: Has this entire series been a way to soft-launch normal human beings as a regular part of the "Sonic the Hedgehog" universe again? The very first episode teased the mysterious Purple-Haired MILF and the fandom immediately went wild with speculation over what this could mean. After her name was revealed in episode 10 as "Professor Victoria," episode 11 has the character making her first proper appearance on the show. This occurs at the same time as "TailsTube" starts an arc of some sort devoted to Tails traveling the globe and seemingly revisiting the cities and countries introduced in "Sonic Unleashed." Divisive upon release in 2008, the cartoons and games have referenced the world presented in this game little since then. It would seem that enough time – seventeen years!!! – has passed that "Unleashed" is no longer controversial. Or at least not so controversial that it's been vanquished forever from canon, like Princess Elise and Soleanna. Considering Ian Flynn is now certified lore master of the official Sonic Sacred Timeline and he used the "Unleashed" version of Earth as the outline for the new globe in the post-reboot Archie "Sonic" comics, none of this is all that surprising. 

Truthfully, I would be surprised if Flynn and Tyson Hesse had been playing a calculated long game with "TailsTube." I suspect they probably had inklings of an idea, slipped Prof. Victoria into that first episode to test the waters, and worked backwards from there. Considering how cagey Sega has been about confirming certain elements as Official Dogma or not, at least up until recently, that strikes me as more likely. Now the $1.25 question: What do I, esteemed "Sonic" dweeb, think of all this? When the Post-Super Genesis Timeline was established in the old comic books, confirming that Sonic and all his freaky animal pals co-exist on a civilized Earth not too dissimilar to our own with human beings, I was hostile to the idea. I haaaaated it, truth be told. Many years have passed since then and I now believe that my dislike for this idea was based largely in my devotion to the previously established Archie "Sonic" canon. I was attached to the idea that Mobius was our modern day Earth in the far future, with humanity having splintered off into hidden conclaves of homo sapiens and four-fingered "Overlanders" who had conceded dominance of the planet to the furries decades before in a global war. Suddenly shifting to the new status quo of "Nah, Sonic and friends peacefully coexist with regular-ass people now and it's always been this way actually" gave me whiplash. 

I still prefer the Classic Archie continuity set-up. Or the idea presented in the live action movies and "Sonic X," where Sonic and friends are motherfucking aliens from another world all together who have gotten Isekai'd to our planet. The idea that Sonic and his race of cartoon animal people could simply peacefully live alongside we imperialism prone humans – that Dr. Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik is the first person ever to try and displace, enslave, or otherwise exploit the Happy Tree Friends in thousands of years – strikes me as implausible. Nevertheless, historical evidence suggests that it really do be like that. The Japanese game manuals for the original Genesis platformers confirm that Sonic has always lived on South Island, that his people have always stuck to these archipelagos, and that Eggman is the first person to try invading them. That would certainly explain why the hell there was suddenly whole cities of normal people in "Sonic Adventure," which seemed like a massive reboot at the time. Sega barely gave a shit about world-building for the first twenty years of the franchise. The simplistic goals of 16-bit platformers didn't necessitate it. However, there have been vague hints that it has always been this way. In fact, the tie-in media like "Sonic the Animation," the OVA kind of, and even "Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog" a little bit have always suggested this state of affairs. It's really only "SatAM," "Underground," and the comic books that have gone with the idea of "Mobius" being a post-apocalyptic Earth or alien world of some sort. 

My point here is: Deciding "Sonic Unleashed" was an accurate depiction of the lay-out and function of the blue hedgehog's world in the Archie comic book series, after many years of that most certainly not being the case, annoyed me. Deciding the same is true for the video game universe – which had never depicted a wider world much at all but usually generalized it to be this way – is fine. Truthfully, this is another example of Ian Flynn doing what he's always done. He takes a bunch of unconnected details left lying around by thirty years of stories and he assembles them into some sort of logical whole. It still bugs me that we've seen very little of how these two societies interact, how they function, or what their mutual histories are. However, I'm willing to accept this as the status quo of the games and comics going forth. Sonic and all the characters we care about live on the islands. On the continents, there is a human society similar to our own – and clearly inspired by various cultures around the globe – but ultimately distinct in its histories, cities, and backgrounds. Alright, understood. Duly noted. Let us move on now. 

I swear I never write these "TailsTube" reviews with the intention of taking far too many paragraphs before I actually discuss the episode. (Okay, except those times I did.) Anyway! "A Meeting of the Minds" has Tails and his live-stream making their first stop-off in Spagonia, that Mediterranean inspired nation noted for its art and history. At the University, Tails meets with Professor Victoria, a published author, archeologist, and world renowned historian. Tails is a fan and is stunned to hear that Torii, as she likes to be called, is familiar with his adventures as well. Their conversation about the ancient cultures of this world, and the various mysterious ruins they left behind, are repeatedly interrupted by Orbot. The machine tagged along as revenge for Tails snubbing him on New Year's Eve. He proceeds to spoil every bit of information Tails has to share with the professor about what he knows of these civilizations, not that he bothered to bring along any hard proof of his claims anyway. 

Apparently Professor Victoria had an oblique appearance in "Shadow Generations," as the mysterious individual known only as "T." responsible for compiling Gerald Robotnik's journal pages. (Which exist as collectable items during gameplay.) However, this remains her sole appearance as anything other than a static image. So what do I think of her? Her design is eye-catching enough. I like the way her bouncy purple hair frames her face. I don't know what's up with the Stillsuit looking outfit she has on. Maybe that's standard issue at Spagonia University. The character is voiced by Crystal Lee, a relative newcomer to voice acting who has mostly worked in video games. Lee seems best known for Chinese gambling schemes/waifu generators like "Genshin Impact," "Goddess of Victory: Nikke" and "Zenless Zone Zero." (Though she did voice Cheetah in a random "Justice League" cartoon, a character who is coincidentally also an archeologist.) Lee adopts your standard dignified, refined older woman voice that only hints at the Bayonetta energy fans are going to graft onto Professor Victoria anyway. Within the narrative of this episode, "Torii" mostly exists as the straight woman to Orbot's antics, here to gasp in disbelief at the outrageous things the machine suggests and be skeptical/mildly annoyed by the whole situation. I suppose this hints at a slight stuffy, formal quality to the character – suitable to an academic – or at least a commitment to the hard sciences. Otherwise, we don't get much of a peek at her personality here. Maybe we'll learn more about her actual opinions and shit when we find out if she has a first/last name or not. 

Overall, "A Meeting of the Minds" is an amusing idea for a little four minute bit of animation. The central joke here is easily predicted. Tails is going to have his dreams and hopes of impressing someone he idolizes smashed and ruined by Orbot, who acts as if he's simply being a dunderhead but is actually being malicious. Every time Victoria references a great historical mystery of the planet's distant past, Orbot bluntly and simplistically reveals the truth about these civilizations as revealed in past "Sonic" games. Tails begrudgingly agrees that the robot's statements are basically true, Torii asks if he has any hard proof for these claims, and Tails bashfully admits he doesn't. As Orbot so amusingly puts it, Tails is asking the professor to "take his word for it, bro." The episode essentially repeats this structure until Torri has had enough and discreetly dismisses herself, leaving Tails' ego in shambles. Stretched over, say, a ten minute episode, this joke might have gotten old but it's more than enough to support a four-minute long YouTube thing. Also, I like Orbot spamming the screen with egotistic art of himself the one time Tails does present video evidence of his crazy claims about history. 

"TailsTube" is returning to its stated purpose here, of expanding on the franchise's backstory and recounting past events for anyone who might have missed them. "A Meeting of the Minds" drops spoilers for "Sonic Frontiers" and "Unleashed." It tells us who the Ancients were, why they came to Earth, what happened to them, and specifies their links to the Chao. The so-called Gaian race is detailed a little less but Orbot sarcastically brings up the climax of "Unleashed," where all the Gaia Temples Mega-Zord-ed into a giant robot to fight off the eldritch abomination living inside the planet. The Rule of Three would dictate that the episode would throw in a third example but I guess the "Sonic" franchise doesn't have any other Ancient Aliens/Indiana Jones shit in its background, at least not until whatever Flynn is building towards with the echidnas is finally revealed. (Hinted at by a diagram of the echidnan idol Knuckles found in the comics recently being on the blackboard behind Torri, alongside a bunch of other ancient artifacts from previous games.) Maybe, in the future, we'll find out that Wisps built the Great Wall of China or something. 

My main takeaway from this is twofold. First off, you're telling me that nobody noticed the Gaia Colossus forming and fighting off Dark Gaia at the end of "Unleashed?" The academic world not knowing about the "Frontiers" reveal makes sense, what with that game happening on a secluded island. That there was no news reports or shaky handheld camera footage of the kaiju fight that went down right before the planet put itself back together? I guess people where a bit preoccupied but you'd think Torri would not be so skeptical of Tails/Orbot mentioning a major global event. The academic world not knowing about the "Frontiers" reveal makes sense, what with that game happening on a secluded island... Though you're telling me that Sonic and Tails don't tell anyone about the shit they see on their adventures? Furthermore, Tails didn't think to bring any evidence of his wild claims along with him to his live interview with the historian? Even if Orbot hadn't show up, "You got a believe me, bro" does, in fact, seem to be the little fox's entire plan on this one. I know I'm probably (definitely) overthinking the joke here, as usual. You'd think Tails would have at least snapped more than one video with his little iPad accessory during these two adventures or whatever. 

Also, I like the photograph Orbot shows of Cubot dressing up as Sonic and Eggman laughing at it. Is the little robotic lackey going to be the constant thorn in Tails' side throughout this entire road trip? That might get old fast. Or maybe not, considering we have only gotten three or four "TailsTubes" in the past years. Previously, the first episode of the year drops sometime in the spring with the second coming around summer, so I guess we can expect episode 12 in July or August. I can't imagine Professor Victoria having that big of a role in any future games or comics. (Unless the frequent fan theory that Victoria is actually her first name, with her last name being Robotnik, is proven true.) However, it would be nice to see her again, if only because I'm curious about what her whole deal is. Tails says he wants to head somewhere more "low-key" next time. Not Angel Island or Mertopia, presumably. Aren't you glad I took three months to review all of these? [7/10]

TailsTube #10 – HAPPY NEW YEAR!

TailsTube #10 – HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Original Release Date: December 31st, 2024

Since the promotional machine for "Sonic the Hedgehog 3" already produced a Christmas special starring the blue dude with 'tude and his pals, I suppose the team behind "TailsTube" decided to dedicate the last episode of 2024 to that other December tradition: New Year's Eve. Now, normally, this is the part of the review where I would meander off-topic to discuss the history of New Year's traditions or try and figure out why Sonic and his weird mutant animal friends celebrate this holiday, in order to pad out the review add depth to my writing and enlighten the minds of the world. But I don't want to do that this time. Mainly, because New Years celebrations are the most basic of all calendar events and present in almost every culture throughout history. It seems to be a natural part of conscious existence to mark the end of one year and the start of the next, as both a time of reflection on what happened in the last spin around the sun and to hope for renewal and good luck on our next rotation. The only question that is truly raised by Tails ringing in the New Year is... I guess Sonic's version of Earth must use the same twelve month, January-to-December calendar we do over here in reality. This is slightly improbable, considering different human cultures can't agree on when the New Year starts and ends. The Archie comics provided Mobius with their own calendar, a common sense but of world-building. However, that's a small nit to pick, even by my fastidious standards. Though this episode does reference the Big Ball dropping in Times Square, begging the question of who the "Sonic" version of Dick Clark is and what his fursona might be.

This episode of "TailsTube" plays out in real time, a clock counting down to midnight as Tails talks directly to his streaming audience. This made me realize that every episode of "TailsTube" proceeds in this fashion, as a natural side-effect of mimicking the V-Tuber live-streaming format. I guess I simply never noticed before. As the New Year creeps closer, Tails decides to call up some of his friends. He asks them about their Resolutions for the new year, another human ritual I guess we just have to swallow exists in this world too. Amy, Rouge the Bat, Knuckles, and Shadow pop up on the mic for a few seconds before Sonic speeds into Tails' workshop to celebrate the calendar flipping over. A good time is had by all, except for Orbot, who momentarily pops up on camera before Tails hangs up on him. Because fuck that guy, amirite? 

From the beginning of writing about "TailsTube," I have felt the need to point out that most episodes are essentially advertisements for some new piece of "Sonic" media that Sega has coming out. Very hypocritically, that always makes me feel a little cheated. As if I signed up to be told a story and was getting a sales-pitch instead. This is despite the fact that I was raised on a drip-feed of commercials-posing-as-cartoons, continuing to have nostalgia and a built-in fondness for such programs. Including, obviously, the "Sonic the Hedgehog" series. What is every "Sonic" comic and cartoon if not an advertisement reminding you to run out and buy the "Sonic" video games? I suppose there is a balance to be had. Either way, I'll give Tyson Hesse and everyone else behind "TailsTube" lately: The more recent episodes have not felt so blatantly commercial in their goals. Episode 10 is mostly devoted to simply spending some time with this cast of cartoon characters that we've all grown too attached to. While you can debate the merits of feeling like, ya know, fictional characters and internet personalities are your friends – or, more accurately, the merits of content creators and companies deliberately chasing that reaction – but I'm not gonna lie to you guys. I like it. It's a fun way to waste four minutes. 

Within that four minutes, “TailsTubes” manages to squeeze in a surprising number of phone calls with his various pals and buddies. I've got to give some serious props to Cindy Robinson, for making Amy Rose actually sound like she's been caught off-guard at a party here. The patient little pause she does when Tails asks what her resolution is. Her short segment does a good job of showing the two sides of the character, as Amy very sweetly dedicates herself to helping people and friends more in the new year... While also grumbling at Sonic. Awww, she really is like the Team Mom, isn't she? Meanwhile, Karen Strassman as Rouge starts her conversation by calling Tails a “little man,” a choice of words that would definitely cause a certain reaction to some corners of the fandom. Strassman also shows some range, playing Rouge as her usual flirty, purring, constantly teasing self before Tails reprimands her for planning on stealing more jewels in the new year. Rouge gruffly tells him to “go to bed,” which is both funny and also one of the rare times we've seen Rouge get grumpy. Oh no, I like grumpy Rouge too! 

Moving on quickly, Tails' conversation with Knuckles reveals that the echidna is eager to explore the world beyond his island. After Sonic races back to Tails' workshop, the fox also expresses a desire to see more of his world. Now that is interesting. Knuckles' sense of duty forces him to maintain his vigil at the Master Emerald. Tails, meanwhile, has always lived in Sonic's shadow. (Not to be confused with Shadow, who has an amusingly curt appearance here.) I'm sure this is all merely a set-up for the theme of TailsTube's third “season,” which promises to be “On the Road.” However, I do like the idea of Tails and Knuckles being united in their desire to get out of their comfort zone a little. Might this be a chance for some world-building as well? I don't know, let's not get our hopes up. 

A reoccurring gag throughout this episode – maybe you would call it a “running” gag – is Sonic racing around the world to interrupt every phone call Tails makes, giving the hedgehog a steady presence throughout these four minutes despite technically only being in the room with Tails at the very end. As far as jokes go, it's a decent one. I like how he shows up on Angel Island, gasping for breath. While it would've been funnier if it simply went unexplained how Sonic managed to reached the floating island, Tails clarifies that he must've taken the Tornado. Him startling Knuckles is also a decent joke. But, hey, how does Sonic know where Rouge lives? I don't think the bat's place of permanent residence has ever come up before but Sonic is familiar enough with it that he can just zoom right on in. Not that I'm implying anything! 

The main element of “TailsTube” that draws the fans in, I believe, is the tendency for little in-jokes and references to be hidden in the background. Episode ten was a big one for this. While Tails is talking to Amy at her party, we see some familiar silhouettes behind her. Big and Cream both got invites. As did the Wolf Avatar from “Sonic Forces,” marking the first time Amy has answered his phone calls in a couple of years. Most excitedly, a very recognizable fluffy tail is seen walking behind our host here. Yes, this minor YouTube episode represents the first time Tangle the Lemur has appeared in a piece of moving visual Sega media. Discounting “Sonic: Speed Battle” anyway, which exists in mobile game limbo as far as canon goes. Might this mean that Tangle could appear on a future episode of “TailsTube?” I would safely say the odds of that are low. However, this episode finally revealed the name of the Purple-Haired Lady long speculated about as “Professor Victoria,” before she graduated to actually being interviewed in the next installment. So maybe Tangle's chances are better than I assume. 

Also, if you squint a little harder, you can see where something about the “Year of Shadow” has been written on Tails blackboard, hastily marked out, and replaced with the “Year of Sonic.” Awww, is somebody a bit jealous? Dude, the franchise is named after you, so maybe reel it in! Also also, the animation they cooked up of a Sonic sprite slowly lowering towards an Egg-Prison as a stand-in for the Big Ball was clever. Anyway, episode ten of “TailsTube” is probably not the most important or groundbreaking installment in a series that is already inessential even during its best moments. (I mean, I guess from technically giving Tangle her first animated appearance.) But I did find it to be awfully enjoyable. And isn't that what matters the most? My personal enjoyment being fulfilled? [7/10]

Sonic X Shadow Generations: Dark Beginnings - Episode 3: To the ARK

Sonic X Shadow Generations: Dark Beginnings - Episode 3: To the ARK

Original Release Date: October 10th, 2024

The three episodes of "Sonic X Shadow Generations: Dark Beginnings" were released weekly in the lead-up to the eponymous remaster/bonus game dropping on October 25th. Yes, the Year of Shadow would essentially climax very close to Halloween, confirming once and for all that Shadow is the most goth of all the "Sonic the Hedgehog" characters. Could they have slipped in a little more weird alien body horror transformations so I could officially consider this a Halloween special? Anyway, four whole days after "To the ARK" was released, a compilation of all three episodes of "Dark Beginnings" would also drop. This gave the impression that such a format was probably how the entire animation was meant to be seen originally. It's harder to build hype when putting out one fourteen short than it is with the weekly drip-feed of episodes. Either way, "Dark Beginnings" ultimately being more of a single little movie than a TV series means it can be logged on Letterboxd, for the handful of people who are both "Sonic" nerds and hardcore cinema devotees. There are dozens of us, probably. 

Because your friends are more important than your employees, "To the ARK" begins with Rouge and Omega helping Shadow break into a GUN base so he can high-jack a rocket ship. After blowing up quite a lot of GUN's robots and vehicles, our hypothetically ultimate protagonist reaches the space shuttle he is seeking. As he launches off towards the ARK, GUN plans on shooting him out of the sky... Before Commander Tower intervenes, calling off the attack, and saying that he understands where Shadow is coming from. Shadow flies towards the ARK, and the threat that dwells there, and remembers his time with Maria before we cut to black. If you want to see the rest of the story, buy the video game, kid. 

Having seen all of "Dark Beginnings" now, the purpose of this cartoon emerges. In the ramp-up to the new game and movie coming out, Sega wanted to remind anyone who had forgotten how fucking cool Shadow the Hedgehog is. That's why most of this three-parter was devoted to the grumpy hedgie getting into lots of fights and blowing tons of shit up. One assumes that this is why Sega hired Christopher Luc and Kevin Molina-Ortiz to direct this thing. Those guys do kick-ass action and that's what they deliver. And you don't need me to tell that, simply as a display for some rad as fuck action animation, "Dark Beginnings" is a massive success. A good chunk of this episode is devoted to Shadow fighting the Blue Falcon. Not the Hanna-Barbera superhero, sadly, but the weird hovercraft thing from the "Shadow" video game. He Chaos-Controls around the industrial launch base, exploding hordes of missiles with his superpowers, and eventually taking down the vehicle personally. Yeah, it's cool as shit looking, with lots of fast-paced animation, weaving camera angles, expressive colors, and high-impact blows. 

The intent of nearly fourteen minutes of Shadow kicking ass and taking names is clear: To wash the bad taste of any middlingly received solo games and remind players that Shadow the Hedgehog is a bad-ass with a sensitive side. Obviously, the overwhelming majority of "Sonic" fans probably don't need to be reminded of this but, if "Dark Beginnings'" flashy as hell animation convinced one extra person to buy "Sonic X Shadow Generations," it probably did its job. The unstoppable super-hero who is gruff and doesn't give a shit, but is driven by a secret pain motivated by the loss of a loved one years ago, is a well known character type. However, there is apparently one thing Shadow isn't willing to do: After thoroughly disabling the Blue Falcon, he makes sure to personally activate the eject feature for the pilot. I don't know if this reflects a personal code on the hedgehog's behalf or if he simply feels it unnecessary to murder a G.U.N. officer just doing his job. It is a reminder that these characters are for little kids and probably shouldn't murder indiscriminately.

Considering the people working on this series would've been aware of the upcoming DC Comics crossover, it can't help but feel like another parallel to Batman. Shadow may be the best there is at what he does but what he does is only a little bit not-so-nice. He does not carry a licence to kill in his wallet and he's never murdered three men with a pencil, a fucking pencil. He's the dark and brooding defender of the world who still believes in the sanctity of human life, old chum. I do wish that "Dark Beginnings" had a little more time, in-between all its bitchin' action scenes, to delve into this idea a little more. The death of Maria floats over the entire series. Her loss will haunt Shadow forever. If his unwillingness to blow up faceless mooks and rip Eggman's throat out with his gloved hands was a reflection of this trauma, an insistence not to out other people through the same pain he's experienced, that sure would've been nice. Instead, it's one little moment in a six minute episode much more concerned with blowing shit up than the consequences of said shit blowing up. I bet the wife and daughter of that G.U.N. pilot will be thankful to the Ultimate Lifeform for sparring their husband/dad's life, assuming his injector seat didn't crash land into a mine field or a pool full of sharks.

I would've liked to have seen a little more insight into Shadow's code of honor but Ian Flynn has other concerns with this last episode. You gotta fill in those plot holes, man. Shadow working with G.U.N. is a well established factoid now, portrayed in the comics and video games. This is despite, ya know, that being the organization that killed his favorite person ever. The implication has always been that Shadow working with G.U.N. represents the fulfillment of his character arc. He's moved on from his pain, wants to help the world, and working with totally-not-S.H.I.E.L.D. is the best way to do that. As far as I know, this has never been exactly stated though. Moreover, why would G.U.N. want Shadow's help, considering he's blown up plenty of their shit in the past and continues to do so, as this cartoon depicts? 

As it is with Hollywood, turns out there is nothing more important than who you know. "Dark Beginnings" reminds us that Shadow and Commander Tower go way back. That they grew up together. Turns out, this makes the head huncho at G.U.N. totally fine with their top agent sometimes going on destructive rampages against them. I guess G.U.N. doesn't have much in the way of authority oversight so Abe and Shadow kind of knowing each other is enough for everyone to overlook all the senseless destruction. This still doesn't quite explain why Shadow would partner up with these assholes but it at least shows there's some sort of link there. 

That halfway explains why Shadow gets a pass for destroying expensive G.U.N. and God knows what else. What is Rouge and Omega's excuse, for aiding and abetting a rogue agent in his misadventures? Commander Tower actually points this out to Rouge specifically. She brings him a thumb drive full of Eggman secrets of some sort to compensate. Mostly, I think her batting her big beautiful eyelashes at her boss, playfully calling him "Abe," puffing up her lips and pushing out the 22Fs, is the real reason for him to forgive her. Okay but Omega has noticeably less sex appeal than Rouge. He definitely helps blow up G.U.N. robots in this episode, including a really cool shot of him employing a big-ass Gatling gun. I guess Tower is reluctant to confront the eight foot tall, heavily-armed murder bot about his indiscretions. What I'm saying here is that G.U.N. doesn't give a shit and let's their agents do whatever, no matter the cost to themselves and others. Your typical black ops organization, in other words. 

But there I go picking at nits again. Sorry, I can't help myself sometimes. The real point of "To the ARK" is not to display some sick fight scenes or give us a peek at the inner workings of G.U.N. higher-ups. Not unlike the various "TailsTube" episodes, "Dark Beginnings" is basically a commercial. It's meant to remind us to run out and buy that new video game. This is most apparent in how "Dark Beginnings" is also a prequel to "Shadow Generations," leading right into the start of the game. In other words, there's no room here to tell a complete story. "Dark Beginnings" doesn't truly have an ending, stopping at the point when Shadow is about to reach the ARK. Unable to tell a complete narrative, the last part of "Dark Beginnings" attempts to create some sense of emotional resolution instead. While on the rocket ride, Shadow thinks back to Maria. He gets sad and wistful for a minute before shaking it off. What this moment does is reveal that a lot of Shadow's tough guy personality is a put on. Inside, he's still a hurt kid still reeling from the sudden death of his older sister figure. It is a nice little moment that does bring things full circle to some degree, re-centering the story once again around Shadow's most important bond. 

If you missed the significance of that, "Dark Beginnings" also includes, in its last few minutes, a weepy pop ballad. I got flashbacks to all those would-be Disney animated movies from the nineties that included a pop version of a song over the end credits in the hopes of getting an Oscar nomination. "Without You" by Casey Lee Williams – apparently best known for one of those internet animated series that look like anime but aren't – skips the synth sparkles but otherwise hits all the clichés of the Oscar Bait Song. It is full of straining emotion, sweeping instruments, and vocals that reach for the heavens in terms of the feeling they hope to convey. The lyrics describe Shadow's difficulty in moving on from Maria's loss. It goes right for the heart and wants to see you cry. I find the song a little overwrought, to say the least, but it does go a long way to making "Dark Beginnings" feel more like a real movie than an ad. They are plucking those heart strings hard. 

While the lack of something like a real ending is an inevitable consequence of "Dark Beginnings" being a lead-in to a new video game, it doesn't kill the buzz the rest of this series gave me too much. If you watch the 14 minute compilation, you get an extra scene of Black Doom brooding aboard the ARK after the credits, an inessential addition. Playing through "Sonic X Shadow Generations" also reveals and additional scene, of Shadow and Maria hugging it out some more. That one feels a bit more like an actual ending, despite still not wrapping up any of the narrative threads. It's hard to give "Dark Beginnings" anything but the highest recommendations based simply on its gorgeous animation. Out of all the new "Sonic" animation to come out of the Youtube channel, I don't think this tops "Sonic Frontiers Prologue: Divergence" as my fave but it's definitely a real piece of art nevertheless. Why can't all "Sonic" media be this damn pretty and be willing to get a little sadder more often? Hopefully Luc and Molina-Ortiz get invited back to do more stuff like this during the, I don't know, The Year of Cream or whatever promotional stunt Sega does next. [8/10]

Sonic X Shadow Generations: Dark Beginnings - Episode 2: Finding the Way

Sonic X Shadow Generations: Dark Beginnings 

Episode 2: Finding the Way

Original Release Date: October 3rd, 2024

While I will admit to a certain cynicism concerning the typical fandom reaction to any and every new "Sonic the Hedgehog" character, the fact is that this series is especially good at designing new cast members. I don't mean solely visually, though an eye-catching design does seem to be enough to get most fans hyped. (Hence the aforementioned cynicism.) While you can complain about how many of the "Sonic" characters are truly essential, the artists and writers are very good about finding roles that were previously unfilled and sticking them together in compelling ways. Shadow's whole thing is that he's a loner, right? Rouge is a morally neutral jewel thief, far more interested in her next score than anything else, yes? These two should *not* be team players. Team Dark, however, has become an pivotal part of the "Sonic" universe. Somehow, when you combine the angsty super-being and the tricky femme fatale with a destruction obsessed kill-droid, it just works. The three personalities play off each other perfectly. The government of Sonic's world deciding to cram three people who would otherwise be supervillains and decide to let them focus their antisocial personality traits on the enemy is some succinct world building. There's a reason "The Dirty Dozen" is a classic and has spawned so many Thunderbolts and Suicide Squads. There's something irresistible about a bunch of assholes and crooks being very much forced to work together for the greater good. Let's us have our villainous cake and eat some moral relatively too or something. 

Anyway, I bring this up because the second episode of "Sonic X Shadow Generations: Dark Beginnings" reunites the star attraction with the other two members of Team Dark. Not that Shadow was intentionally seeking them out. Following his dream/vision last episode, Shadow is looking for a space craft to reach the ARK. He headed to the nearest Eggman base to find one. By a massive coincidence, this is the same base that Rouge and Omega are currently attacking for some reason. She claims it's just a supplies depot, with no rocket ships in sight, but does agree to help Shadow out... Assuming he comes to Sonic's birthday party with her. In-between conversation points, the trio murder a shit ton of Egg Drones and Shadow reflects on a memory of Maria comforting him when he was feeling bad for himself. 

Last time, I criticized "Dark Beginnings'" script for being a bit too on-the-nose. Ian Flynn has the sole writing credit on this entire mini-series but I don't know if that means he had relative creative control or was working within ideas and storyboards provided beforehand. The dialogue sees the characters rather flatly explaining what they are feeling and doing. A ten year old Abraham Tower rushes out of a room and makes sure to sneer that Shadow is a freak on the way out. Inside, the Lifeform Ultimatized for Self-Pity describes his existential angst over actually being genetically engineered from alien DNA. In a good example of telling rather than showing, he describes how this information makes him feels and awkwardly includes the word "larva." Maria, in turn, knows exactly what to say to make the broody test tube baby feel better. Her words not only specifically address what Shadow is feeling in that moment but also echo into the future. Maria just happened to say that Shadow will someday meet other people he can trust, exactly as the episode cuts to him racing off to encounter Rouge and Omega. Damn, that little girl was optimistic about getting off that space station! 

This tendency towards dialogue that is obvious, if not a touch overwrought, continues into the next scene as well. Shadow's explanation to Rouge about what he's doing here is a rather flat and basic description of everything that happened before. While I'm enough of a nit-picky, overly critical dork to be bugged by this, it doesn't truly distract from the emotions "Dark Beginnings" is invoking here. Here's why I think Shadow's story resonates with so many people: It shows the power of kindness. Shadow was born to be a weapon. He was programmed to be an avatar of Gerald Robotnik's planet-consuming need for vengeance. When we first met him, he was defined by nothing but his impressive superpowers and humorless, antihero attitude. 

Despite that... Maria was kind to him once. She could have been like Abe Tower and bullied Shadow, fearing him for not being a "normal" child of God. Instead, she reached out to Shadow and was gentle, empathetic, and nice to him. Maria's life was always destined to be short, even if G.U.N. agents are crappier aim. As the subtitles remind us, she's been gone fifty years by the time of the current day. Despite that, those simple acts of sympathy still resonate. A little girl who died half a century ago was nice to Shadow the Hedgehog and that was enough to make him realize and understand that he is capable of more than destruction, able to pursue goals beyond revenge. The foundation of such a method is love. That Maria's actions causes Shadow to completely change his direction in life, to be the hero Maria saw in him and not the weapon everyone else wanted him to be, proves that love ripples further than hate or revenge ever could. The idea that a simple act of kindness can change a life – and, in effect, change the world – is a touching thought that feels like a fundamental truth about the universe. 

As much as the emotion element of this episode resonates with me, I don't think that will be the main thing most people take away from “Finding the Way.” As with the first episode, the main thing that is immediately memorable about this four minute installment is how fuckin' cool it looks. The intense visual presentation is evident right from the get-go. The scenes on the ARK are moodily lit, the twitching Black Arms larva being weirdly expressive. As soon as Shadow races across the screen, the action rarely stops moving. In fact, the battle with the Egg Drones is so fast-paced and stylized that you almost have to watch it twice in order to catch everything that happens. Shadow weaves in and out of the laser blasts and weapons at a rocket's pace, striking back with such intensity that the image seems to shatter. When Rouge and Omega shows up, the action gets even more explosive. Rouge flies up into the air, poses before the moon – some real “Batman '89” vibes there – before striking down at a giant-sized drone with an earth-splitting kick. It's so fuckin' cool and it looks amazing.

It's very satisfying watching Rouge the Bat kick ass. I feel like it doesn't matter how often she shows up, the bat is always an underutilized member of the “Sonic” supporting cast. Rouge has such a grace about her, all of her movements being laced with sensuality. This means she has chemistry with everyone, Shadow included. What could have been a totally plot-driven dialogue exchange, where they discuss what's going on and how to push forward, becomes an amusing flirty discussion. The way her eyes bulge out when Shadow scoops her out of harm's way, how she bats her lashes and rolls her head when talking him into going to Sonic's birthday party: It shows such an immediate and charming personality. To the point where, when she looks over her shoulder at Shadow and asks “Interested in raiding a G.U.N. Base?” I had a Pavlovian reaction of “I'm interested in raiding that ass!” I probably shouldn't have told you that. Anyway, Rouge rocks and she makes this episode better than it already was. 

Karen Strassman has been voicing Rouge since 2010, meaning she's got a good grip on the character by this point. Strassman definitely makes Rouge sound cute and flirty, while maintaining an edge of professionalism, that suits the character well. However, as I mentioned last time, I do find the Japanese voice cast a little smoother sounding. Rumi Ochiai, the Japanese voice of Rouge since the “Sonic X” days, sounds a little less ditzy, a little less Valley Girl, and that goes a long way towards fitting the character's femme fatale attitude. Roger Craig Smith shows up as Omega here and I'm really not crazy about his take. Doesn't sound robot-y enough, ya know? Taiten Kusunoki – check out this dude's head shot – makes the kill-bot sound both more mechanical and also more expressive, a good balance. Kirk Thornton has more quiet moments in this episode, so I think he's a little less gratingly tough. 

It's clear that Flynn is telling a direct story here, one designed to expound on Shadow's past while also pushing him towards the events of the video game re-release this entire venture is meant to promote. At the same time, assuming this script truly does reflect Ian Flynn's vision more than anyone else, “Finding the Way” can't help but reflect the author's quirks. In this four minute episode that is extremely heavy on the action, Ian still finds some time to plug a plot hole. For years, fans have speculated on why Shadow the Hedgehog – not exactly the most social of guys and not somebody who generally considers himself a friend of Sonic the Hedgehog – would show up at his birthday party. While it's funny to assume he was doing some sort of information gathering, the truth is Rouge just blackmailed him into doing it. Dude just can't help himself. He has an obsessive compulsion for finding weird gaps in story logic and cooking up solutions to them. 

The script also makes sure to remind us that Abraham Tower grew up on the ARK, a tidbit I always forget about that. Is there any particular reason he has heterochromia? All those years of staring at glowing glass tubes full of weird alien weapons or off-spring or something. Anyway, this rocks. It looks fucking amazing and it also has a nice amount of heart, expanding on the emotional boundaries of this universe while also giving us all the things we want to see. Aw darn, there's only more left? We could've gotten a little more! [9/10]

Sonic X Shadow Generations: Dark Beginnings - Episode 1: Shadow and Maria

Sonic X Shadow Generations: Dark Beginnings

Episode 1: Shadow and Maria 

Original Release Date: September 25th, 2024

Sega, in all its lofty buzz-word corporate speak pretensions, assured us that 2024 was going to be the Year of Shadow the Hedgehog. Recalling Nintendo's famously unsuccessful declaration that 2013 was the Year of Luigi, Sega boldly announced last April that Shadow was going to take a front seat presence in the "Sonic the Hedgehog" franchise. They set up a website for it and everything. Accordingly, the last 12 months saw many big and small promotional events built around the so-called Ultimate Lifeform. All the mobile games got Shadow-centric events. Shadow-related DLC became available for the current games, including the Apple exclusive one you forgot about. There was a manga, a Lego set, fancy pins. Those living in the southwestern United States could purchase Shadow themed collectible cups at Bahama Buck's, a shaved ice chain that apparently exists. There was a Shadow the Hedgehog-themed Angry Birds tournament. Did you know there were Angry Birds tournaments? In the year 2024?! Most bizarrely, a physical version of the Dark Rider was toured around the U.S., allowing fans a chance to gawk at the actual motorcycle actually operated by the actual Shadow the Hedgehog! What a time to be alive. 

The promotional event known as "Fearless: Year of Shadow" is technically still on-going, as of this writing. After getting to cosplay as Batman back in September, the angsty hedgehog is taking a prime position next to the Dark Knight in the DC Comics crossover. IDW is publishing a Shadow one-shot this July, which I guess will mark the official end of this fifteen month long year. Despite that, all the hype was clearly meant to build towards two climaxes in late 2024: The release of "Sonic the Hedgehog 3" in theaters in December and a new "Shadow" video game in October. Honestly, the release of the remaster of "Sonic Generations" was completely overshadowed – heh – by its bundled spin-off, "Shadow Generations." The new half-game was well received by fans and I'm guessing it sold pretty well too. "Sonic the Hedgehog 3" also made a lot of money. All of this means that "Year of Shadow" was an actual good idea Sega had, paying off for the company. Suck it, Luigi! Hedgehogs rule, Italian plumbers drool! 

"Shadow Generations'" story drew heavily from the previous video game starring this guy, "Shadow the Hedgehog." That the foregrounding of the angsty hedgehog's extraterrestrial origins were rapturously received by fans shows we've come a long way since 2005. Two decades ago – give me a second to reflect on how much of my life I've wasted – Shadow's solo game was widely loathed. The gameplay received mixed reviews and the new features were said to lack depth, sure. However, most of the negative reaction centered on the game's tone and story. The decision to add guns and mild swearing to a "Sonic" game was seen as a desperate, comically half-assed attempt to turn a strictly kid-friendly series into something edgier. The game's plot was largely criticized, especially the decision to add aliens to Shadow's origin. I don't know why but people always get mad when aliens are involved in the origins of "Sonic" things. This reception led Sega to not touch the Black Arms stuff for years, the comics forced to keep them off-panel. 

That was a long time ago. The kids who played "Shadow the Hedgehog" are now old enough to look back on it fondly. The snarktastic world of mid-2000s gaming journalism, that treated everything "Sonic" as a shameful relic of the nineties, is now a distant land itself. At a certain point, people came around to actually liking Shadow's edgiest phase. The prominent role for Black Doom and frequent references to Shadow's past in "Shadow Generations" cemented that part of the franchise lore as another weird, convoluted thing that makes the "Sonic" universe the delightfully eccentric entity it is. Shadow is no longer ashamed of being a genetically engineered super-weapon created with extraterrestrial DNA. He lets his freak flag fly now, baby. 

I bring all of this up because, as we've established by now, animated shorts promoting the new "Sonic" games getting posted to YouTube are common practice. To show how fuckin' serious they were about this Year of Shadow, we actually got a three part presentation. "Sonic X Shadow Generations: Dark Beginnings" was an animated prequel to the game, delving more into Shadow's past, posted in the weeks leading up to the game's release. Episode one, entitled "Shadow and Maria," shows the young Ultimate Lifeform and his favorite Robotnik family member bonding aboard the Ark. Their innocent playtime, and the pep talk she gives the always angsty Shadow, is interrupted when G.U.N. attacks the satellite. There's a robot fight before Shadow seems to fall further and further into his memories, revealing this flashback as a dream he's having. Disturbed upon waking, he becomes convinced this was a vision rather than a dream. He sets out to uncover what it could mean. 

Of the twelve people who are reading this blog, I'm about to alienate six of you with the following statement: I think Shadow's backstory, with Maria's death and the ARK and all that, is kind of overrated. Maria Robotnik is the definition of a sacrificial lamb. She exists to die, to give Shadow a properly edgy reason to be pissed at the world. Meanwhile, Maria barely exists as a character in her own right. In this episode, she and Shadow are seen playing, racing to an observation deck to see the Aurora Borealis over the Earth. To emphasize how fragile and vulnerable she is, the girl is gasping for breath. In return, Shadow gets righteously angry with himself for his inability to heal all her woes. Naturally, her response is nothing less than perfectly loving and accepting. If, by some unlikely series of circumstances, you started watching "Dark Beginnings" without knowing the fate about to befall Maria, you'd still probably guess that she was doomed to die. She is the definition of a beautiful cinnamon roll, too good, too pure for this world. It all feels a little contrived, a bit melodramatic, if you ask me. 

All of which is an issue I have with "Sonic Adventure 2's" script, not with what "Dark Beginnings" is doing. Ultimately, this episode functions as an expanded version of Shadow's dark awakening. It exists to give us more context to these events. Ian Flynn's script is a little heavy on the "as you know" dialogue, Maria explaining her illness and Shadow discussing his status as the so-called Ultimate Lifeform. However, I think the writer mostly works as an epic exaggeration of Shadow's mythic origins. There's explosions and catastrophe and a duel with a robot. Perhaps in this context, Maris being a simplistic plot device of a character makes sense. This is the "Sonic" brand embracing its own grandness, applying an almost Biblical sense of mythological importance to these events. This is not merely Shadow's origin story but his creation myth. It's supposed to be bigger than life, I suppose. That is further supported by a sweeping, very dramatic musical score.

That last point is further emphasized by the main thing most people remember about the "Shadow Generations" short: These cartoons look really fucking pretty. All of "Dark Beginnings" was directed by Christopher Luc and Kevin Molina-Ortiz. Luc and Molina-Ortiz are best known for their work as storyboard artists on "Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" and "Blue-Eyed Samurai," shows I have not seen because I'm perpetually seven years behind what's current. Nevertheless, I am familiar with these programs' reputation for being gorgeously animated. Especially in terms of highly kinetic action scenes. That's where "Shadow and Maria" truly excels. The fight between Shadow and Emerl – I always forget he's part of Shadow's origin story – weaves stylishly in between their fists and feet as they kick and punch at each other. Each blows send out shock waves of energy, shattering near-by glass tubes, to show us how overpowered these guys are. There's a punishing preciseness to their movements, each blow landing with the kind of determination that you usually only see in Hong Kong martial arts movies. I have no doubt that the fight was actually choreographed, because it's all so exact on its movement. The animation is unfailingly smooth with a constant sense of movement, evocative lighting, a depth of color, and an artistic eye that constantly dazzles. It looks exceptionally cool, the quality of animation here being on-par with an especially high quality action anime. 

"Dark Beginnings'" commitment to looking as bitchin' as possible at all times becomes more apparent as the episode reveals that this is a dream. As Shadow crashes through the glass of the ARK's observation deck, the shattering window takes him further into his own memories. He becomes a fractured witness to Gerald's isolation and execution, before Maria's death appears to him as a storm cloud cracked by a stray lightning bolt. Black Doom's glowering face appears in the sky behind it, suggesting the alien overlord's status as the author of all of Shadow's pain. I love shit like this, when a show gives itself a license to be a little surreal, a little dream-like, to explore the character's psychological hang-ups as physical obstacles. That, to me, shows a willingness to take the character's trauma seriously and to engage with these lofty ideas on a bigger level. Of course Maria and Gerald's death loom over Shadow's whole life like an ominous storm cloud. Of course he feels trapped in a nightmare prison that he has nothing to do with, forced to relive the same tragedy until he breaks the cycle of manipulation and control. Hell yeah, that's the good shit. 

And, I must emphasize again, it all looks really cool. There are several truly striking, moody visuals here. Like the red tubes of Gerald's experiments lighting up in the dark as Shadow sails by them or a lingering shot of her shattered moon in the night sky, a ring of debris around it. Any criticism I might have is minor in comparison to the sheer artistry on display. (For example: I've never been crazy about Kirk Thornton's Vegeta-ian take on Shadow. It's a little too self-aware in its raspy toughness. Kōji Yusa, who always plays Shadow like he's the morally conflicted undercover cop in a Yakuza movie, has a better grip on the character for me. I think Yuri Shiratori is also a little less aggravatingly precious as Maria than Stephanie Sheh, hence why I tend to stick to the Japanese audio for these things as much as I can.) I can't praise the "Sonic CD" opening strictly for the strength of its vibe and aura moments and not extend this slice of raditude the same praise. And there's two more? Neat! [9/10]