Sonic Super Special: Issue 5 - Sonic Kids

Sonic Super Special: Issue 5 – Sonic Kids
Publication Date: April 1998

Readers who grew up in the late eighties or early nineties may remember “Muppet Babies.” Spun off from a sequence in “The Muppets Take Manhattan” which showed Jim Henson’s famous felt creatures as toddlers, the show was a big hit. Big enough that other studios tried to spin their own properties into “baby” versions. That’s how we got “Flintstone Kids,” “Tiny Toon Adventures,” “A Pup Named Scooby-Doo,” “Tom and Jerry Kids,” “Jungle Cubs,” and even “James Bond Jr.!” Archie Comics might have pioneered this kind of thing with “Little Archie,” which has been published in various forms since the sixties. Considering all of the above, maybe “Sonic Kids” was an inevitability. Despite the gimmicky concept, the two Sonic Super Specials devoted to this concept are actually fairly well regarded.

The first story, “When You and I Were Young, Sally,” was written by Mike Gallagher and illustrated by Manny Galan. As kids, Rosie raised the future Freedom Fighters in Knothole. Tails is feeling insecure about his lack of special abilities, especially when compared to Sonic’s super-speed. Sonic gives the young fox the idea to spin his tails like a helicopter, defying logic and sailing into the sky. Being new at this, Tails quickly looses control of his new abilities. The gang track him to a hollowed-out tree stump and the cave below. That’s right. This story is the secret origin of Tails’ flying ability, his nick-name, and the future location of Freedom HQ. Accordingly, it ends with Sally naming the group the Freedom Fighters and deciding to battle Robotnik’s regime.

The above description probably makes the story sound really trite and silly. It’s actually surprisingly good, though. The Freedom Fighters don’t act like the heroes they are now. Instead, they’re kids. Sonic shows off and brags. (So, you know, not too much has changed.) Though a pretty serious kid, Sally is still happy to play when Julayla gives her permission. Rotor uses big words, as if he’s trying to impress his friends with his big brain. There are also cute nods to future history. “Boomer” is revealed to be a childhood nickname of Rotor’s. Sally, in as diplomatic a fashion as possible, acknowledges that Antoine wouldn’t be useful for a while. Though an energetic kid, Sonic is still willing to help out his pal, by encouraging Tails. The story concluding with the discovery of the future Freedom HQ and the team taking a vow to fight tyranny is satisfying.

It’s cute but not syrupy. It sets up future events but isn’t overly self-referential. It’s fun without being goofy. In other words, it’s one of the best things Mike Gallagher has ever written for this series. Unlike his uneven work in issue 60, Manny Galan’s artwork is very good here. The “kid” designs look like younger versions of the character we’re used too. Their cuteness is not overly emphasized. Galan’s expressive faces also really help this story out, since it’s mostly about the kids reacting to the world in the hyped-up, exaggerated way kids do.

The second story continues the “kids” theme. The embarrassingly entitled “Stop… Sonic Time!” was written by Karl Bollers and drawn by Art Mawhinney. In the present day, Sonic regales a group of kids with the story of how Tails got his sneakers. The flashback starts on Tails’ birthday. Sonic rushes into Robotropolis and buys a specialized pair of sneakers from a shifty individual, who readers may recognize as Tails’ uncle Merlin. Around the same time, Robotnik deploys a new weapon, a beam that can freeze time. He targets a random patch of the Great Forest, sending in soldiers to capture the frozen denizens. Sonic, being out of town, avoided the weapon’s range. So it’s up to him to save the day.

“Stop… Sonic Time!” feels a lot like a left-over “SatAM” script. A time freezing ray definitely seems like something Robotnik would have cooked up on that show. The long-forgotten Cluck even puts in an appearance. Sonic’s role in the story as a smart-ass hero who uses his cunning as much as his speed to defeat the villain recalls his characterization on that show. Sonic’s strategy involves him pretending to be frozen, being brought into Robotnik’s HQ, yanking on the villain’s mustache and getting the SWATBots to blow up the bad guy’s own device. Aside from a few comic-exclusive concepts, such as Merlin Prower or Crabmeat as Robotnik’s number one toady, this easily feels like it could’ve aired on ABC back in the day.

Furthering this feeling is Art Mawhinney’s pencils. Whahinney, of course, started out as a storyboard artist for the cartoon and, even this far into the book’s existence, he maintained that connection. The young versions of the Freedom Fighters look especially adorable in Mawhinney’s already cartoon-like style. He even manages to make Tails’ feet not look monstrously weird! Having said that, Art occasionally goes a little off-model. His Crabmeat looks more like an actual crab than a robotic facsimile.

The last story in the book doesn’t feature younger versions of the main cast, though it continues the theme of “memory.” In “Total Re: Genesis,” Sonic, Sally, and Antoine have barely survived a confrontation with the last remaining ComBot, which suddenly activated. As Uncle Chuck asks for a report on what happened, each Freedom Fighter gives their recollection of the events that just transpired. Each character’s version varies wildly from the other. Finally, using Nicole’s previously unmentioned satellite hook-up, Uncle Chuck observes the objective version of the truth. In other words, this is the Sonic version of Akira Kurosawa’s classic “Rashomon,” a reference the readership for this book surely understood.

What’s really cool about “Total Re: Genesis” is that it gives us a peak into each of the character’s heads. In Sally’s version of events, she’s extra confident. While her teammates are knocked unconscious, she stays in the action, defeating the robot with her quick thinking and enduring toughness. Antoine’s version has him as a dashing hero, single-handedly taking down the robot with his swashbuckling skills. When Sonic recalls things, he’s portrayed as a pun-sweeping action hero. He effortlessly defeats the villain with his super abilities, cracking lame jokes all the while. The objective truth shows that each of these stories are slightly true and, ultimately, teamwork is what took the bad guy down. This is a nice way to show us that the characters truly do depend one each other. The individual memories give us a concise idea of everyone’s personality. It’s a fun read.

A defining gimmick for “Total Re: Genesis” is that each memory is drawn by a different artist. Newcomer Nelson Rebeiro handles the framing device. I wonder if Nelson Rebeiro and Nelson Ortega are actually the same person, as their styles are very similar. The artwork is moody and features heads and hands that are slightly exaggerated. Yet it’s also consistent, with a good sense of motion. Sally’s flashback is drawn by Art Mawhinney. Mawhinney’s work is typically excellent though, it must be said, his ComBot looks a little blocky and uninspired.

Sam Maxwell draws Antoine’s flashback. Maxwell is an acquired taste, as his work is extremely expressionistic, frequently approaching action scenes from off-beat angles. I’m on record as being a fan and his work here is pretty great. I especially like his use of shadows, which emphasizes how melodramatic Antoine’s recollection is. Sonic’s flashback is drawn by John Herbert, last seen in issue 54 and credited as John Hebert here. Herbert’s action is a little stiff and his Sonic looks a little goofy. Yet his detailed ComBot is awfully creepy. Rebeiro returns for the epilogue, drawing most of it as a hyper-contrasted “hologram.” Though undeniably a gimmick, I like the different artists approach and it helps bolster a fun story.

“Sonic Kids” might be the best of the Sonic Super Specials thus far. It doesn’t have the plot holes or overdone writting of “Battle Royal” and “Return of the King.” While there’s nothing here matching the emotion of “Brave New World,” the artwork is much, much better. In other words, Archie managed to turn a potentially awful idea into a pretty solid comic book! Cherish moments like this because they didn’t happen very often. [8/10]

Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 52

 
Sonic the Hedgehog: Issue 52
Publication Date: August 1997

As I said in my review of issue 51, the post-“Endgame” world of “Sonic the Hedgehog” wouldn’t truly be established until the “Brave New World” one-shot. Essentially, the book was just passing time with stories that had no further effect on the plot or world. While “Reality Bytes” in issue 51 wasn’t satisfying for anyone, issue 52’s “The Discovery Zone” is a fun Elseworlds style story, a light-hearted distraction much needed after the seriousness of the “Endgame” arc.

Sonic is teaching Tails how to keep up with him by using his tails as speed-boosting propellers, as in the video games. While running through the newly freed Mobian countryside, they see something very strange: An uninhabited zoot suit walking through the air. Sonic follows the suit into a cave and is teleported into an alternate universe. In this black-and-white film noir world, Sonic is a private detective living in a city occupied by Robotnik’s forces. He meets up with Sally, a singer in a night club and secretly the leader of le résistance. She hires Sonic to retrieve Nicole but the hedgehog is soon more deeply involved in the rebellion.

“The Discovery Zone” was written by Tom Rolston. Rolston previously contributed the off-tone and out-of-character “The Map” in the “Battle Royal” special. With this story, Rolston is placing the established characters into an entirely new context. So it’s all right if his characterization is a little loose. “The Discovery Zone” is a straight-ahead action story, focused on Sonic retrieving Nicole. It has a smooth plot construction. Sonic meets with Sally and gets his mission objective. He fights off some robots and grabs Nicole. After making it back to the nightclub, Robotnik corners him and the Princess. Using a Power Ring, he smashes Robotnik’s bots and the two escape. As they’re waiting for Sally’s plane to come in, she talks the hedgehog into joining the rebellion. It won’t win any awards but there’s something to be said for such smooth, easy story construction.

The “Sonic” cast members also work surprisingly well when plugged into a film noir storyline. “The Discovery Zone” is obviously inspired by “Casablanca,” though only loosely. The female lead owns the night club, for just the most prominent difference. Also, he gets on the plane with her at the end. This would totally negate the point if “The Discovery Zone” was a straight adaptation of “Casablanca.” Instead, it merely has fun by slotting the “Sonic” cast into the stereotypes of the film noir. Sally is the sexy femme fatale, Sonic is the private dick, Robotnik is the evil dictator (in other words, the role he always plays), and Uncle Chuck is the informant. Really, Chuck is the only part that doesn’t work, as his ability to have all the answers is slightly tiresome. I do like the touch of Chuck appearing on a video watch, which is a nice homage to “Dick Tracy.”

The action is fairly solid. Sonic whacks a quartet of robots, all of whom have heads from famous pop culture robots. That’s right, dear readers. Crow T. Robot, Tom Servo, R2D2, and the “Lost in Space” robot have cameos in a “Sonic” comic. After the Power Rings have been infused with so much mystic doo-da in the comics recently, it’s fun to see an issue where Sonic just uses them for a temporary power boost.

Manny Galan’s artwork is… Well, not bad. By this point, Galan was already the regular artist on the “Knuckles” book and regularly doing fine work. Here, it’s clear he still doesn’t have a total grasp on the Knothole cast. It’s not that any one is ever off-model. It’s just that everything is slightly stiff. While Galan showed a talent for action and facial expressions in the “Knuckles” book, here the movement is slightly awkward and the expression are a little weird. I do like the grey scale coloring in this issue though. That helps really sell the film noir environment.

 
Also included in this issue is a short back-up story called “First Contact.” This story marks the first time the book really tries to established the post-‘Endgame” world. In it, Sally uses Robotnik’s still-existing satellite network to contact other Freedom Fighter groups around the planet. This is a fine basis for the story, since it’s already been established that there are multiple other guerilla groups around Mobius. However, instead of just uniting the other rebels, Sally warns them about what is quickly becoming my least favorite new plot device: “Zones,” portals to alternate realities. The world is still feeling the effect of the Ultimate Annihilator and this is making all sorts of weird shit happen. After telling them this, Sally looses the signal and the story ends.

Having the Ultimate Annihilator shake up Mobius’ dimensional walls was such a lazy way to generate new stories. First off, what the hell was the Ultimate Annihilator suppose to do anyway, other then ultimately annihilate Knothole? How the hell did it result in all this weird shit? This story clarifies that Knothole, for some damn reason, is still stuck three hours into the future. WHY?

 
Aside from that, “First Contact” doesn’t contribute much. It spends two pages summarizing “Endgame,” for one thing. Mostly, it allows for some cameos from other characters. Among Knuckles, Walt Wallabe, and Sealia the Sea are Pollo the Bear from “SatAM” and a character that looks all the world like Mina Mongoose, someone who wouldn’t be officially introduced for a while longer. Canon-wise, we’re just supposed to discard this early appearance of Mina, the same way we ignore all those cameos of Bean and Bark Spaz sneaked into the book. Aside from some gorgeous Art Mawhinney artwork, “First Contact” is disposable.

The cover story is a goofy lark, though a fun one. The back-up story is fairly useless. I suppose issue 52 evens out to a [7/10.]

Sonic Super Special: Issue 1 - Battle Royal

Sonic Super Special: Issue 1 – Battle Royal
Publication Date: April 1997

For a while, Archie had been publishing 48-page “specials” that tied into their flagship “Sonic the Hedgehog” series. These books were even published on a roughly quarterly basis. When “Battle Royal” was first published, it was released as just another one of these specials. Later in 1997 though, Archie had a thought. Why release the specials as just stand-alone comics? Why not tie them together as an on-going series of quarterlies? I don’t know why they didn’t come to this conclusion sooner. Eventually, the company would re-release “Battle Royal” as the first issue in the Sonic Super Special series. Sonic Super Specials would run for 15 issues, ending around the same time Archie was cutting down many of their other series. The series’ debut was so haphazardly tossed together that it was published in April of 1997, despite being set between issues 46 and 47 of the main series, published back in February.

None of that really mattered to me as a kid, as I was unaware of the changes that would soon be affecting the series. All I knew is that a new comic devoted to Sonic and Knuckles beating the shit out of each other was coming soon. “Battle Royal” actually doubled up on the gimmick. After all, Sonic and Knuckles had beaten the shit out of each other plenty of times. In “Battle Royal,” we would see their respective teams pound on one another. As a kid, I often wondered who would win in a fight between the Freedom Fighters and the Chaotix, even though the latter was still a relatively recent addition to Sonic lore. Never let it be said that Archie didn’t know their audience. Along came “Battle Royal” to answer that question… Sort of.

The Freedom Fighters receive a message from Knuckles and the Chaotix, letting them know he’s retrieved the legendary Sword of Acorn. Meanwhile, Knuckles and the Chaotix receive a message from the Freedom Fighters, saying he’s had the Sword too long and they intend on taking it. When Sonic and friends arrive, Knuckles and his gang attack them. Later, the Chaotix are surprisingly attacked by Sonic’s team. Soon, both heroes are actively clashing. However, Princess Sally and Archimedes suspect that they are being manipulated by a greater villain.

For a while, Sonic and Knuckles usually ended up fighting whenever they met. By this point in the series’ history, both heroes should probably be over that. Moreover, there’s really no reason for their teams to join the fray. Luckily, “Battle Royal” thinks up a fairly clever way around this issue. Both teams are seemingly attacked by the other, prompting a conflict in the middle of the book. Of course, it turns out neither team was the aggressor. In both cases, the villain Mammoth Mogul magically disguised his minions, the Fearsome Foursome, as the other team. It was all a distraction, so that he could the Sword of Acorn. It’s a mildly clever variation on the classic comic book rule of “First they fight, then they team up.” First, the Freedom Fighters and the Chaotix wail on each other. After realizing they’ve been deceived, they team up to take down Mogul. That way we get our big fight scene but in a way that makes sense.

Or mostly makes sense. “Battle Royal” is slightly bogged down in mythological goofiness. The heroes realize they’ve been duped through an extended sequence of nitpicking. Bunnie lifts a heavy object with her organic hand or the number of Freedom Fighters is off. (Midway through the book, the nugget that Sonic and Mighty already know each other is casually dropped. This is a reference to the obscure “SegaSonic the Hedgehog” arcade game. Penders would eventually get around to clarifying this plot point.) One especially baffling moment has the teams being teleported by Archimedes’ powers, after Dulcy and the ant spray fire at one another. Mogul, of course, has to explain his scheme in detail, because that’s just the kind of villain he is. The script also awkwardly re-contextualizes Mogul’s first appearance in the “Mecha Madness” special. See, he was just pretending to be incompetent. It was all a test to study the Chaotix’ abilities. Uh huh.
 
Illustrating “Battle Royal” is Sam Maxwell, yet another new artist brought into the Archie fold. Maxwell’s artwork won’t be for everybody. It’s incredibly abstract at times. The bodies of the heroes bend in all sorts of odd directions. He’s also quite fond of drawing panels from unexpected angles. Such as when Mighty dives through Bunnie’s legs or Dulcy breathes fire directly at the reader. Despite its apparent looseness, there’s an internal logic to Maxwell’s artwork. The characters look extremely different but stay on-model. Truthfully, only Archimedes looks weird in his style. There’s an incredible expressiveness to their faces, Maxwell gifting the characters with a vibrant anime-like style. Most importantly, his incredibly energetic style and sense of motion is extremely well suited to an action-based story like this one. Every panel Maxwell draws leaps off the page. I can see readers being put off by this off-beat or abstract artwork but I’ve always loved it.

The fight scenes are the main attraction here and they’re lots of fun. “Battle Royal” does a good job of showing off the unique abilities of each teams' members. Mighty tosses around trees. Charmy flies circles around Tails. Sally performs a number of powerful flips and kicks. Bunnie tosses huge boulders. Rotor – feels like its been a while since Rotor has been in a fight scene – produces a number of trap capsules from his utility belt. The only team that truly gets the short end of the stick is the Fearsome Foursome, who have yet to be clearly defined as characters.

When the book shifts away from the action, it’s less successful. The ending is a real head-scratcher. King Max is suddenly de-crystalized. Meanwhile, Mogul reappears on the Floating Island, holding the real Sword of Acorn over his head, claiming the good guys went home with a fake. That kind of devalues the entire adventure, doesn’t it?

Also included in “Battle Royal” is “The Map,” one of the odder Sonic stories Archie would ever published. “The Map” revolves around Antoine discovering part of a map left to him by his father. He’s determined to track down the other half of the map. This takes him directly into Robotropolis. There, Snively is devising a new plan to undermine Robotnik’s authority. Using his new wave of machines, called Eggrobos, he plans on digging up the Krudzu (the cybernetic plant species last seen in Sonic #1) and unleashing it on Robotnik. The two characters cross paths and Antoine is soon fighting for his life.

Recently, in issue 46 of the main “Sonic” book, Antoine received some much needed character development. We learned he wasn’t always a putz. In fact, he was secretly a badass solider this entire time. It was a somewhat sudden reveal but one the book would run with. “The Map,” meanwhile, takes Antoine’s new status and pushes it way too far. Here, the French coyote is coldly focused on his mission, even bluntly dismissing Bunnie when she enters his hut. He loads himself up with a sword, a backpack, camo-print pants, a beret, combat boots, and a bunch of pouches. He sneaks into Robotropolis, determined and serious. Later, he’s dodging gun fire and slicing robots in half. Antoine was still a total clown just a few issues ago so it’s a jarring transformation.

The weirdest part about “The Map” is that it still occasionally goes for humor. Tom Rolston, an author who has never worked on “Sonic” before, wrote this one. While most writers only half-way use Antoine’s accent, in order make his dialogue readable, Rolston goes full force with the weird French thing. Every one of Antoine’s sentences is peppered with “zat,” “za,” “dere” and “non.” It’s incredibly distracting. Moreover, the coyote still fouls up. He alerts Snively’s Eggrobos after stumbling on some piping. Later, he survives being shot by the robots through pure, dumb luck. The story ends without him grabbing the other half of the map, making this entire mission pointless. Dave Manak does the artwork. He doesn’t ditch his inherently comedic style but instead tries to make it work for this grim story. The result is Antoine and Snively, looking jagged and cartoony in the typical Manak way, grimacing and gritting their teeth. It’s surreal.

Through it all, “The Map” is still a pretty decent action story, nicely paced and featuring plenty of exciting moments. Antoine hiding in the sewers from the Eggrobos generates some decent suspense. The new robots actually prove to be competent threats. It would’ve been easy to fix too. Just recast the main role with Geoffrey St. John, a more serious character with a para-military background, and “The Map” makes way more sense.

Though flawed, I still get a kick out of “Battle Royal.” The main story thinks up a novel solution to getting the heroes to fight and features some extremely interesting artwork. “The Map,” meanwhile, is pitched at a totally different level then most Archie stories, making it a bizarre curiosity for fans. To an old time fanboy like me, that equates to a good time! Now if only they had stuck an “e” on the end of that title… [7/10]