#Avoid The Void

[niyana-the-ambiguous-mobian]

IS THAT-, ARE WE GOING TO SEE ALTERNATE VERSIONS OF HIM BECAUSE OF THAT??? CAUSE THEY SHOWED HIM LIKE THAT FOR A REASON

[sparkles-rule-4eva]

Soo, how about that first episode of Sonic Prime S2, eh, guys? How we feeling?

Quick analysis. Sonic has trauma from this whole ordeal, guys. He was showing clear signs of PTSD this ep. Maybe it was obvious, but I'm gonna rant a lil about it, anyway.

It started when Shadow clarified to him, sharply, that their old reality no longer existed. You could hear in his voice that he was on the verge of tears. And just LOOK at him. 😭

And when Shadow took him to the ghost version of Green Hill? When he was talking to who he thought were his friends, only to slowly realize they were nothing more than ghosts of his real friends as they repeated their phrases over and over again? His expression, the way he shook his head ever so slightly, the way he backed up, had to sit down, was actually SHAKING?

Shadow brought him to the cave in the mountain, where the INCIDENT happened. One symptom of PTSD is avoidance of places or people that remind one of a traumatic event. Sonic's face when he realizes where he is?

His ears go up in alarm and his eyes go wide. And then he just stands there, frozen. Shadow has to say his name to get him to start moving. And even when he does?

The way he has one arm up, that's a very defensive stance, often a signal of fear. And he walks, so slowly, like in a trance, into the cave. He stares at the ghostly remains of the Paradox Prism, starts getting flashbacks all over again, all with this look of dazed terror in his eyes.

It hurt my heart to see. 🥺😭

[incorrect-quotes-lobby]

(After the Avoid the Void episode)

Sonic: We had a bonding moment! I cradled you in my arms!

Shadow: Nope, don't remember, didn't happen

[swati-art]

Why are you gay. WHY ARE YOU GAY

[cattyanon]

I don't think I've talked about this Sonic Prime AU I have so I'm going to talk about it rn since it's on my mind.

Okay, so you know how in season 2 episode 1 Shadow steals Sonic's tech to try and go into a different Shatterspace but Sonic remembers what he said about the Prism Energy he had and chases him down? And how there was shown to be a time difference in New Yoke where Sonic had only been in Boscage for a day but when he went back he learnt it's been much longer?

Well what if Sonic didn't remember? And what if the time difference inside the yellow Shatterspace/Ghost Hill was a big one? >:)

What happens is that Shadow just barely manages to save himself from falling into the Void, takes a small break, thinks about what to do next, and eventually relents that he'll need Sonic's help in order to restore the Paradox Prism. So he goes back and looks for Sonic and finds him sitting down with his back facing Shadow surrounded by their ghostly friends with glowing stripes that look like the ones his gloves and shoes had when he had with the limiters.

When Shadow calls his name he looks back at him with shock and says "Shadow...? I-Is that really you?" in such real sounding disbelief it confuses him. Then Sonic starts acting erratically while talking to Shadow and saying things that don't make any sense from his perspective. Couple that with his odd appearance and the fact he could somehow change the pitch of his voice, Shadow thinks he's some kind of entity that replaced Sonic for a little while.

A small fight ensues and eventually concludes with Shadow believing it's the real Sonic and Sonic processing the fact that for Shadow it really had been minutes and scared of what everybody would think of him in his current state.

And as a side note, the reason for his weird new powers (like being able to change the pitch of his voice) and appearance is due to all the time he spent in the Shatterspace without the limiters to help properly rein in all his Prism Energy. Basically without the limiters and no knowledge on how to control the Prism Energy it eventually builds up to the point it starts leaking out and adapts to the Shatterspace he's in- which is also why he doesn't die of starvation or dehydration.

Edit: Fic for this is out!!

[000marie198]

Rewatching Avoid the Void just now, I noticed something.

This moment and Shadow's pose while he descended looked very familiar.

I was wondering where I've seen that pose before and

.....

One more:

Easter eggs my beloved

[saitaymaart]

"Follow me." 🌌

A redraw in my style of a scene in Sonic Prime - Avoid the Void 🌀

[clefadrylcorner]

Marvel actors showing up to set

[erikwiese]

SONIC PRIME "AVOID THE VOID" STORYBOARD COMPARISON

Inspired by what some of my colleagues have posted to Tumblr and IG, I’ve put together this side-by-side comparison of my Sonic Prime storyboards and the final animation. This clip is the climactic ending to “Avoid The Void,” an episode I’m particularly proud of. It’s the first one of Season Two, where Sonic and Shadow finally meet in the Shatterverse. It’s the moment their storyline, which started in Season One, connects and leads to a vicious no-holds-barred punk rock brawl!

I wasn’t supposed to direct this episode, as I had already moved on to direct a Peanuts special for Apple+ (though continued as EP on season two, but not on season three), but this episode fell into my lap due to a glitch in the schedule. So it was Peanuts by day, Sonic by night, with three weeks to build the animatic with the storyboard team. Because we had half the time we usually have, we kept our boards rough, rarely tying down a drawing. Anyway, what’s the point of doing tight drawings when it’s going to be CG, right?

Below, a still from act three of Avoid the Void, when Sonic blasts out of the Ghost World/Ghost Green Hill.

From the early stages, when Man of Action was breaking out this episode, it was clear that this one had the potential to be something big and cinematic. Set in the surreal world of the Shatterspace, it combined weighty emotional drama with intense action. At long last, it was also the big Shadow episode that fans had been patiently waiting for!

The photo below is a screen-cap from a Zoom record of Sonic Prime's "Avoid The Void." All the voice actors are Canadian. While Duncan (one quarter of Man Of Action) and I are in Los Angeles. Seen here are (left to right) Devon Mack, Erik Wiese, Duncan Rouleau, Andrew Duncan, James Corrigall, and Ian "Shadow" Hanlin. 

Below are some storyboard panels I drew from the opening sequence from Avoid The Void. I had to add spot color because I wanted to give the feeling of the void and also because of the different colors of the gateways.

I hope you enjoy this behind-the-scenes look at Sonic Prime.

P.S. A shout-out to the hugely talented STORYBOARD TEAM and ANIMATION CREW! You guys rock!

[eemoo1o]

Shadow: It looks like the only way we can fix this is if we work…

Sonic: (in unison) Together?? :))

Shadow: (in unison) —together. :(

(…)

Sonic: Man, you must really hate having to admit you need me.

Shadow: YOU need ME.

Sonic: SURE, I’m big enough to admit that. But, not as much as YOU need ME. (Jumps into portal)

(…)

Sonic: (to himself) I won’t let you down, Shadow. *o7*

[chaos-controlfreak]

yeah yeah i watched the new episode too

[niyana-the-ambiguous-mobian]

THIS WHOLE SCENE, I ACTUALLY SCREAMED WHEN HE GOT FLUNG BACK LIKE A DAMN COMET. And the way Sonic screamed out his name when he was looking for him ;-;

AND THEN THIS LITTLE BIT RIGHT HERE?

Good kush y’all, that’s some damn good kush.

[sparkles-rule-4eva]

Theory Time: Nine's Redemption

So the shards can all do something, right? The shard of the Bosscage Maze could generate powers of nature and grow plants and trees instantaneously, which goes along with that dimension as a whole. The No Place shard could shoot lightning from the looks of it, something storm related, ties in somewhat well with the dimension. The Grim Shard could create things. Since the world of Grim is empty, that kinda makes sense.

But what about the shard of the Ghost Green Hill?

Sonic and Nine had a heart wrenching argument in the last episode, and when Sonic slipped up and accidentally compared Nine to "the real Tails," how did Nine respond?

I seriously don't think Sonic intended to imply that Nine was fake. He was just finally coming to terms with the fact that Nine truly isn't Tails.

In the Ghost Green Hill, the only "living" beings are the ghostly versions of Sonic's friends that just keep repeating the same lines over and over. They're like memories caught in a broken record. So what if the shard of Ghost Green Hill can show memories? And do we recall another argument had in the exact same place at the beginning of this season? Remember what Sonic said in response to Shadow saying the variants of his friends weren't real?

He harshly defended Nine (the others too, but mostly Nine) to Shadow's face. Shadow ended up dropping the subject because Sonic was getting fired up over it.

Nine has all the shards with him now, including the Ghost Green Hill shard. What if he actually sees this memory? What if seeing Sonic defend him like that will help change his mind?

[its-malarkey]

A redraw of the classic Sonic Prime moment :)) I had a lot of fun drawing my blorbo, this absolute icon of a character

[queer-in-a-cornfield]

I’ve just finished watching sonic prime season 2/season 1 part 2

Holy shit

Incredible

I’ll probably not shut up about it for a bit but rn I just want to mention how much I love that both Sonic and Shadow were right in their argument in episode 1. Nine is real (sonic) but he’s not tails and not trustworthy (shadow). It just tickles my brain

[mariposiel]

I am totally normal about the premiere ep of Sonic Prime S2