#im gonna nap and probably reread this and wonder wtf I'm saying

[artificialchaoscola]

I'm sleep-deprived and yapping about zombot arc! Shadow

Wouldn't it have been really cool if, like, Shadow turning was ultimately Sonic's fault in some way? Or in a way that he would blame himself for it in the future when Eggman is rubbing in his face how his inaction at taking the Doctor out is what led to this in the first place?

Like, I really like this. How Shadow immediately sees the gravity of the situation and doesn't appreciate Sonic's jokes, how he tells him its HIS fault for what occurred, and how Sonic after can't retort anything he says because he's not incorrect. It's harsh, and I think it's fitting for it to be so. Sonic is whimsy and a jokester, always trying to keep the situation light, but that's not what the situation needs.

I think everyone generally agrees that the way Shadow went out in this arc stinks. It was reckless and ooc, as well as just generally boring for a zombie story. He literally grabs the zombot of his own accord for no reason and gets infected, and then refuses to run. Like... what are we doing LMFAO

Instead, what if we make a situation where Shadow has to save someone? I think sacrificing himself to save Rouge AND Sonic as well as the survivors in the truck is the play. Sonic's demonstrated at this point in the story to be winded from all the running he has to do, so make HIM fuck up here. Make him get hit from behind, momentarily stunned and for once not fast enough to stop the zombots from attacking the truck. Make Shadow see this, pause, and then at the last second he chooses to save Sonic and the survivors inside the truck, ordering Sonic to go. We could have Omega also be ripped apart a bit before this to really push Shadow's decision. He could tell them all to run, Sonic reluctantly has to follow, and Shadow's fate should be left a bit ambiguous here. Make the reader think on whether or not he's infected or not, whether or not he can actually survive the infection. Shadow's comms are dead afterwards, we have no clue. Imagine the suspense and the drama + Sonic having to live with the fact that despite that argument Shadow still saved him.

(With this you can also have it be a hope that maybe Shadow IS immune, that they can find him and solve this, but in the meantime they'll have Sonic do the tests.... just for the drama... They hit a lot of zombie tropes in this arc we can't miss THIS one!!)

Then, maybe around when Zavok and his posse start taking control, you finally have a moment where they use zombot Shadow. I think having this happen around Sonic's conversation with Eggman would be HUGE, because Shadow would be the representation of how much he fucked up.

Shadow was the one who wanted to kill Eggman, Shadow was the one who gave them more time despite that, Shadow is forced to be a weapon once more, and Shadow is the representation of what would occur if Sonic turned. Sonic DOES mention in the comic that Shadow is "faster than the average zombot" even without his shoes, which implies what it needs to, but I think it would've been awesome to have this moment happen later in the story, after many bad things occur (like Charmy, Vanilla, the loss of HQ, Tangle, etc.)

Shadow is very useful as a reflection of Sonic in general, and while I don't NEED him to be a main character in this arc, I feel it would've been more impactful to Sonic's story to have him be one of the final threats/moral dilemmas. Sonic is so close to turning as his running is getting less effective at this point. He'd think about how Eggman tried blaming him for helping to spread the virus unknowingly, and then he'd consider how zombot! Shadow has likely been doing just that. All because HE messed up in Sunset City.

I do love this arc regardless because I'm a sucker for zombie stories. I think my only criticism overall is Shadow, which I know a lot of people can relate on. With a little reconstruction though we can make this REALLY good, or at the very least avoid the issue of Shadow going out like a total jobber.

...At least we got that one panel of zombot!Shadow chasing after the truck and it was really funny so bonus points IDW you win I'm wrong frfrfr--