#imagine it like the thing the sonic social media has with tails

[muppets-in-storage]

While I completely understand them making Scooter a bit older since The Muppets (2015) since that series was a slightly more realistic take on the Muppets with all of them feeling a little aged and aimed at older fans but I sincerely feel it happened too soon and we were robbed of Minecraft YouTuber Scooter

[generic-sonic-fan]

The Sonic Crew, 40 Years Later-

Just one of many possibilities, of course, but I challenged myself to imagine what Sonic's crew and Team Dark might look like when they're older. Long post beneath the cut:

Sonic

The one who changed the least

Still an absolute daredevil with a heart of gold

All that running and frequent injuries did a number on his knees and he started using knee braces and a cane/crutches in his late 20s

(it took him a while to be okay with this, but he's over that now)

(He can still run if needed, but he'll be hurting for a few days after.)

Gets his need for speed by racing cars, motorcycles, the Tornado, and by skydiving

Still LOVES helping people and spends a lot of time volunteering

Yes, he's still signing autographs

He's got a permanent home now, mostly to store the Tornado and his other vehicles. He took over Tails' workshop when the fox left for greener pastures and likes keeping the place fixed up.

He's been reading a lot more. Now that he's got a permanent place, his library collection is massive

He's just taking it one day at a time, man. Always has, always will

Tails

The one who changed the most

He owns a garage in the city now, with a sign on the door that says "Prower's inventions and tinker shop"

He always knew that he wanted to sell the things he made, but he had absolutely zero interest in the business side of things outside of running social media accounts

So he's gone indie! He's almost more of an artist and influencer than a world-class inventor, but don't let that fool you

He's still selling his patents to top companies and making a crapton of money

(he's the second most well-off of the friend group aside from Rouge.)

So how's he changed?

He's lost a lot of his childlike innocence, become increasingly more focused on people's perception of him and making online content

and ultimately, he chose technology over the outdoors

Sonic kinda knew that sort of thing was inevitable, but it still hurt when Tails decided to move to the big city and stop exercising as much

But he's very happy where he is and how he's living, and he and Sonic still catch up with each other frequently

Knuckles

Still guarding the Master Emerald!

But he's really learned how to do more with his life despite staying on one island for most of his time

Tails finally convinced him to install enough technology to keep him connected to the world below

Since then, Knuckles has become the number one expert on Echidna anthropology/archaeology in the world

He's written several books using speech-to-text technology

(it's been difficult work- he's not the best reader or writer, but he put the effort in and now he's a published author!)

When he's not writing or giving talks on Echidna culture over video call, he's still taking care of Angel Island, growing his own food, and making more discoveries about ancient Echidna culture. That much hasn't changed

Ever since the defeat of Eggman, he's more willing to take vacations off of Angel Island, but it's still a rare occurence

He usually notifies the friend group via group chat whenever he plans on coming down for a visit, often resulting in reunions

Amy

Amy absolutely "settled down" and opened the bakery she's always wanted to open

Unlike Tails, she LOVES the business side of things along with the actual baking

Her bakery is one of the most famous in the city she lives in now

She loves the thrill of commanding the kitchen staff and managing all the tasks that go into producing good pastries!

She also developed a love for children, and spoils any child in her vicinity rotten

And she has kids of her own, duh

She helps organize and moderate the group chat for the old friend group

And she loves coordinating visits/reunions

Her house is always open to anybody and everybody. She loves entertaining guests, especially if they're old friends

Her house is SO cute and homey it's almost overbearing

When her kids have kids she is going to be the sweetest grandma ever

Rouge

Already detailed in this post here!

Shadow

He's matured a lot, finally having enough wisdom to act as "the wise immortal"

He's become a nomad, sort of like how Sonic used to be, except he takes things at a much slower pace

(he retired from GUN and absolutely had a midlife crisis. this is the result)

He keeps diligent journals of every place he visits, food he tries, people he meets, and so on

He's picked up on Sonic's hobby of learning languages due to his travels

He's gotten much better at socializing with strangers but still prefers solitude

. . . but he still carries a phone on him and participates (albeit rarely) in the old friend group chat

(Rouge and Omega have him on speed dial, of course. He'll drop everything at their beck and call, even if it's a simple "I miss you")

He's gotten more interested in some more esoteric stuff that would've made his younger self cringe, like poetry and spirituality

The world knows him as a bit of cryptid, lol

Omega

Unlike Shadow, he's not retired!

He left GUN and became a freelance operator. Kind of a mercenary, except he has just a touch more discretion than that

(His version of a midlife crisis happened when he finally killed Eggman circa 30 or so years ago. Those were some messy, messy times, but since then he's made peace with his continued existence)

He is still Angry, of course, but he's a lot more chill than he used to be. Sometimes this throws Shadow for a loop.

His ego, though ever-present, has been tempered by age

Mostly because he kinda thinks his younger self was a bit cringe??

Mention the word "Meatbag" and he'll get stoically embarrassed about it

Anyways, he's also a nomad, traveling the world to do jobs and stopping by Tails' garage for repairs

He stops by Rouge's house often, and meets up with Shadow at least once a month

("YOU ARE THE FOOLISH ORGANICS THAT CONVINCED ME OF THE POWER OF FRIENDSHIP. YOU ARE NOT GETTING RID OF ME SO EASILY.")

[myymi]

okay so, this takes place a day after sonic prower

happy wednesday everyone 👍

@starrjoy @passionartx

----------------------------

Sonic took a deep breath before stepping out onto the stage, waving at the audience full of mobians and humans alike, all clapping and cheering for him.

He smiled at everyone as the security guards silenced the crowd so he could speak. He sighed and straightened his posture.

“I’d like to start this off by thanking everyone who allowed me to come speak today,” He gestured off to his right, running through his pre-made script in his mind. The crowd clapped again, but quieted down much more quickly.

“The reason I asked to give a speech is because I wanted to address a certain, uh, rumor that’s going around on social media.” He explained, swallowing a lump in his throat.

He glanced behind him at the wall that would project everything he wanted to show for a brief second, as if he was expecting it to fall apart then and there.

He cleared his throat and looked back to the crowd, “It’s come to my attention that a lot, and I mean a lot, of people have been saying bad stuff about my buddy, Tails.”

There were a few quiet murmurs throughout the crowd, but Sonic didn’t focus on them. He wasn’t here to listen to the crowd anyway.

His ear flicked when he heard one of the producers click a button, which meant the first bunch of articles were now being projected behind him.

Checking over his shoulder to confirm it, he frowned at the news headlines before pointing back at them.

“As you can see, a common theme here is that Tails is the reason it takes a bit longer to take down Eggman.” He gritted his teeth, he still couldn’t believe that people were blaming Tails for all of this.

If anyone should be blamed, it should be Eggman. Y’know, the guy who’s trying to take over the world.

Nobody should be blaming the kid trying to save it.

“I’ve come here to end those rumors once and for all.” Sonic made sure he kept his voice clear as he spoke.

He wanted everyone to fully understand what he was about to say.

“Tails is not, and never will be, responsible for however long it takes for us to defeat Eggman.” He glanced over the crowd, watching as the onlookers talked amongst each other. Some would look up to the big screen, then immediately turn back to whoever they were talking to.

“Especially,” Sonic spoke again, waiting until most of the crowd was looking at him before continuing, “not when he’s being held hostage.”

More shushed arguments were exchanged, but the hero continued on with his speech.

“And, to whoever had the genius idea to make this comment,” He paused to gesture to the wall behind him as the projector changed to show an image of a reply to one of the other articles.

‘It’s probably fake. Sonic just keeps the kid around for his smarts, he doesn’t actually care about that thing! They don’t even have the same last name.’

“I’d like to publicly announce that since yesterday, December Fourth, my name has been legally changed to Sonic Prower. Approved and signed by Judge Nicholas Howard.” He silently thanked Amy for helping him with this speech, he could only imagine how much of a train wreck it would be if he’d done this by himself.

“From now on, I don’t want to hear or see anyone saying Tails is at fault for Eggman’s destruction,” He said as the projector clicked off, “that is all.”

As he walked off the stage, he heard a few hesitant claps that soon turned into the whole crowd cheering.

He just hopes they'll listen to what he said.

He glanced down at his communicator when it started vibrating, smiling when he read the contact of who was calling him.

‘micro buddy💛 is calling..’

Sonic quickly tapped the green phone button, a wide grin on his face when he saw the two tailed fox on the screen.

“What was that about?!” Tails yelled, glancing between the communicator and what the hedgehog assumes is the T.V.

“What?” Sonic asked, though he knew what the kit was referencing.

“That!” The fox grabbed the side of his head with his free hand, “wh– you– Sonic!”

“Ain’t a big deal, bud,” The teen shrugged as he walked down the street, “can’t have them blaming you like that for Eggman’s stunts.”

“You didn’t have to do that, Sonic,” Tails shook his head, “it really wasn’t that bad. I-I can handle it.”

“I found you curled up on my bed crying because of it, Tails.” Sonic shook his head, “sure, maybe you can deal with it, but that doesn’t mean you should. Nobody deserves that, especially not you.”

He looked down at his communicator when he heard sniffling, frowning when he saw his brother scrubbing at his eyes, “Hey, dude, need me to come there?”

“No, no,” Tails shook his head, “it’s fine. I’m fine, it’s just–” he took a deep breath to even out his breathing, “unexpected. And a little overwhelming?”

“You sure?” The hedgehog raised a brow, glancing at the other civilians around him, “‘cause I can be there in just a second, pal.”

“No, really, it’s fine Sonic.” The kit sat down on his sofa, a small, genuine smile on his face, “thanks. For, y’know, all of this.”

“‘Course, bud,” Sonic smiled back, “s’what best bros are for.” He winked at the fox, earning a fit of light laughter for it.

“Yeah, alright,” Tails shook his head, “let me know when you’re heading back here next. I’ll make some chili dogs for you, as a thanks.”

“Ya don’t gotta do that, li’l bro,” The teen snorted before putting on a fake deep-in-thought face, “but~ if you plan on fryin’ those dogs for me..”

The fox rolled his eyes, “You say that as if I cook them any other way,” there was a big smile on his face, “I know how you like your chili dogs, big bro.”

“Alright, alright,” Sonic laughed and held up his free hand in a mock defense, “how ‘bout I come over next week, then?”

“Mmm, I dunno if I can fit you in then, Sonic.” Tails hummed, his smile turning into a smirk, “you might have to come in next month.”

“Don’t mess with my heart like that, little buddy,” The hedgehog said with a fake pained tone, dramatically placing his hand over his heart, “you’re killin’ me, bro.”

The kit laughed and looked over his shoulder, “well, I definitely have enough for you. Just let me know when you’re gonna come over ahead of time so I can have them ready when you get here.”

“Sure thing, li’l bro!” Sonic said, giving a two finger salute.

“I gotta get back to work,” The younger said as he turned back to his watch, “I’m assuming Amy’s gonna call ya. Tell her I said hi!”

The teen rolled his eyes, “You know, you could just come over and tell her yourself instead of staying inside all day.”

“Sorry, can’t hear you!” Tails stood from the couch, making his way into his workshop, “I think you’re breaking up!”

“You said that these things were built well enough so that wouldn’t be an issue?” Sonic questioned with a raised brow, smirking at the other’s shocked look.

“Uhh,” The kit looked around and shrugged, “I don’t have another excuse. Byeloveyou!”

The line clicked, signaling Tails had hung up.

Sonic sighed, a fond smile on his face.

“Love ya too, li’l bro.”

[beevean]

Yeah, I'm not gonna deny that old ship wars did involve threats, telling other people to kill themselves, etc. But now they do all that and also make it a moral issue

There are many theories that attempt to explain why there's been a sudden shift in mentality on the internet, but for now, the easiest one IMO is that nowadays content is thrown in your face thanks to social media and algoritm.

When I was little, I had to look up ship material. I had to look up porn. I had to stumble upon specific pages like Kink Memes. The worst that could happen was that I browsed the gallery of an artist I liked, and found that they shipped Sonegg :P <- true story

Point is, "don't like don't read" (or see) was the motto for a reason, because it was possible.

Now? Now I see on Twitter how finely attuned the algoritm is to pushing on you the worst material. It's not uncommon that it recommends me posts of people QTing posts about how rapeable Tails and Cream are, and putting their own disgusted comments on them. Which, okay but maybe don't show me that, I'm not interested, I don't follow anyone here. You're making me see content I didn't ask for, and engage with people I want nothing with.

So, first of all, it has become harder to filter content you don't like. Then there is the whittling down of privacy (dash did a thing lol). Again, as a kid, I was more or less allowed to do what I wanted on the internet, including finding "problematic" content (helped also by the language barrier: I learned English very quickly, and my parents did not :P). I can't imagine how it would have been if my parents monitored every place I visited. Of course I'd feel ashamed if I had to restrain myself like that, knowing that my parents would deem me "abnormal" (more than it already happened).

But that's not even the biggest issue. There has been enough talk about how back then, fandom was niche, it was for the freaks, nerds were bullied, girls would be mocked to hell and back for shipping (they still are, as long as you put "straight" and/or "white" lol, but back then you didn't even need to pretend 🙃). Now, again thanks to social media, fandom has become normalized. Much more people are on the internet, and much more people engage in fandom content. And they find the weird shit. And they become the bullies themselves.

The Sonic fandom 20 years ago was a target of mockery for attracting autistic furries, you know, the typical jokes that we all wanted to fuck Big. The Sonic fandom didn't care, and between one discourse about Sonic's eyes and the other, they had fun shipping all the things and being cringe in their corner. Now it has become less socially acceptable to mock autistic furries :P but "normal" people have infiltrated the fandom, and they are demanding normalcy, which results in absurd things like wishing death on Shadria shippers because eww human and anthro or THEY'RE SIBLINGS YOUR HONOR

... now, if you ask me why people (sadly not just teens) nowadays have convinced themselves that fiction is reality, I don't fully know. I do believe in the theory that radical feminism has managed to seep into the fandom and leave some of its core tenets engrained into everyone, even the people who say "punch terfs" or that radfems would despise, such as "engaging in sexual content makes you a deviant", "kinks fetishize my trauma and you're retraumatizing yourself if you indulge in them", and the idea that half of the population is pure and can do no wrong while the other is inherently corrupted and not human...

[sonicboomseason3]

🐚🎹🎮

The whole gang :D (Sonic, tails, knuckles, Amy, sticks, shadow)

ask game: send me AT LEAST 3 emojis (the more random the better) and AT LEAST 2 characters from sonic boom and i’ll come up with a little drabble mini story in response!

On this particular Friday night, Team Sonic and Shadow for some reason are all sitting around Amy's house playing a kart racing game on her television. Given that the game only allows for a maximum of four players at once, Sonic, Tails, Sticks, and Shadow are currently in possession of the controllers, while Amy sits off to the side watching the race unfold in earnest. Knuckles, meanwhile, has opted to leave his place on the couch to play Für Princess Elise on Amy's piano to pass the time. And to provide some horribly unfitting background music that clashes heavily with the game's OST.

"I still don't understand why you lot are forcing me to play this pathetic game alongside you," Shadow says as he passes Sonic, much to the latter's frustration.

Sonic groans at both the loss of his spot in first place and Shadow's obstinacy. "Shadow, for the last time, us asking if you wanted to join us for Game Night, and you saying you had a million better things to do before showing up anyway isn't called forcing you. Now quit making stuff up."

"Yeah, not cool, Shadow!" Knuckles calls out from his place at the piano as he continues playing. "I bet you're the type who makes fake callouts for people on social media!"

"Not surprising. I'm telling you guys he's secretly some alien-hedgehog hybrid thing bent on ruining the rest of us in every way imaginable, starting with our online reputations," Sticks remarks as she picks up an item box. She grins maniacally when she realizes which power-up she now has at her disposal. "And someone like that doesn't deserve to be in first place! Take this, ya filthy stinker!"

Shadow snarls when the spiny blue shell comes down on his motorbike, stunning his character long enough for the other three to overtake him and then some. He barely even notices Knuckles abruptly playing an off-key scare chord before resuming his classical music without missing a beat. "I will personally make sure your end is slow and agonizing, waste of space masquerading as a badger."

"Wow. Barely three hundred words in and Shadow's already threatening to kill off one of my teammates," Sonic deadpans, picking up an item box. "Why are our fans so hung up on him becoming our sixth member again?"

"Sonic, don't pretend like you haven't thought about it yourself," Amy reprimands. "You said once, and I quote, 'He'd make a great addition to Team Sonic.'"

"Amy, why would you say that out loud when he's right here?!" Sonic complains. The sound of Shadow's derisive snort is all it takes for him to toss his red shell behind him, hoping that it makes its way past Tails and Sticks and hits this jerk in his (character's) dumb face. "I said he'd be good if he wasn't such a hard case!"

"I'm not a hard case, Blue Boy. I simply find no merit in joining a team named after you. Makes me sick just thinking about it."

"The fact that you can't even admit that you're here right now out of your own free will is literally the definition of being a hard case, dude."

"Whatever. Once I defeat you at this wretched excuse of a racing game—" Sonic's red shell finally comes around the corner, and Shadow expertly dodges it. "—I will ensure the same fate befalls you in real life."

"Yeah, maybe say that when you're not in sixth place and I'm not in first."

Shadow's expression darkens again at the reminder of his current placement and the reason behind it. "That is not my fault. It's your idiot badger friend's for unleashing her equally idiot shell on me."

Sticks huffs. "Rude. What was I supposed to do with it then, not use it?"

"Ignore him, Sticks. He's only salty because he just found out that he's bad at gaming."

"Ooh, here we go," Knuckles mutters under his breath as he switches from Beetleoven to some generic tense-sounding music. You know, the kind that plays when a fight is about to break out.

Small cracks begin forming at the edges of the buttons of Shadow's controller as he begins to press them a little too hard. "Huh? Care to run that by me aga—"

"Okay, we're not doing this. You guys stop it right now," Amy commands, a certain edge creeping into her voice. Sonic and Shadow will not be ruining Game Night… or her house. "That includes you, Knuckles."

Knuckles immediately goes back to what he was playing before. "Sorry."

To Sonic and Shadow's (especially Shadow's) credit, they both fall silent. No one says anything as the race moves on to the final lap. Shadow passes the two NPCs in front of him. Sonic maintains his lead. Shadow picks up an item box as he passes Sticks. So does Sticks as she falls into fourth. Sonic continues to maintain his lead. And then—

"Sonic, I'm making you pay for your disrespect by crushing the annoying fox into the dirt."

Right as Shadow is about to pass Tails, he activates his Mega Mushroom power-up, making his character grow three sizes bigger. He stays true to his word and runs over Tails's kart, settling into his newly obtained spot in second place.

Knuckles plays another scare chord to punctuate Shadow's hit-and-run.

"Oh, come on, I've been minding my own business all race!" Tails shouts, dismayed at his reduced speed. "Why am I getting punished for what Sonic said?!"

"Seriously, Shadow, can you stop taking your anger out on my friends every time you have beef with me? It's not fair, clever, or even funny—"

"Heads up, Sonic!"

Sonic's jaw drops when Sticks ambushes him with another blue shell right when he's about to cross the finish line.

Scare chord.

"Sticks, how in the heck are you getting all these blue shells?!" he demands to know, feeling utterly betrayed as Shadow zooms right by him and even more so when he cinches his victory on that stupid bike of his.

"I dunno!" Sticks says cheerfully over Shadow's laughter. She passes the still flattened Tails and immobile Sonic within seconds of each other, effectively nabbing the runner-up spot. "I just didn't want Shadow to stay mad at me."

"Great, you guys are just about done! Perfect timing, too," Knuckles says as he finishes his song, standing up and walking over. "Finish the race and gimme the controller, Tails."

Tails and Sonic exchange a look as they finally recover and pass the finish line, getting third and fourth respectively. Sonic slumps in his seat and holds his controller out for Amy to take. Tails sighs and hands his over to Knuckles.

"Oh, don't be so upset, Sonic," Shadow says smugly. "No one can help it if you're bad at gaming."

Shadow is so not invited back next time.

[subbyfoxelf]

ships i ship the hardest

one of the things i've always loved about tumblr, and a big part of why i'm so happy to be back, is that (and yes i know i'm dating myself here) it feels like a spiritual successor to livejournal. and frankly, i fucking miss livejournal something fierce.

so it seems like a bit of a waste to just reblog stuff & write the same reviews of media i've been writing wherever my online presence has existed for the last half decade or so. it's about time i get into that really cringe bullshit that i always used to post on livejournal. and this seems like exactly the kind of thing I woulda posted on there back in the day.

cringe is dead, long live cringe.

now, just to set some limitations on myself so this post doesn't become totally unreasonable (just reasonably unreasonable), i'm going to make a genuine effort to limit myself to one entry per show/game/whatever (i fully reserve the right to just flagrantly ignore this limitation when i so choose). i will also mostly focus on couples rather than just putting all my favorite characters in a giant polycule. cool? cool.

(cw: some of these characters will have canon age gaps and/or are minors in some canons, just assume there's an element of au-ification or time skipping here. cool? cool.)

sontails

my profile on every social media site used to include "and yet, be it cruel or comforting, this machine unerringly writes sontails angst & fluff. that's what it does." so, yeah.

i also happen to believe that they're in a big ol' gay polycule with shads & knux, and recently i've especially had QUITE A FEW THOUGHTS about shadtails (do i share that fic here? hmm. i'll think about it.)

but yeah. for me, sontails has always been the central relationship of this franchise, even before I shipped it. i got super annoyed when the franchise did dumb shit like when sonic x gave chris almost exclusively emotional beats that should've gone to tails, or when sonic unleashed gave sonic a substitute sidekick (ok tbf i was already a shipper by the time i played unleashed), or just the games increasingly deemphasizing their relationship in general.

but, yeah. probably needless to say, this one is super important to me.

godzilla/mothra

godzilla is a bratty bottom, mothra smacks him around every now & then when he gets out of line. this is just canon.

riker/worf

a lot of this is just the fact that frakes' charisma is totally off the charts, and riker is such an outspokenly openminded dude that you can kind of imagine that literally every single conversation he has with a sentient, physically compatible, appropriately-aged character has a non-zero chance of ending with them in bed. he's like a non-predatory kirk. just total throwback pulp-inspired sexually adventurous explorer dude.

and as worf is canonically his best friend, and we see several instances of them sharing a deep, emotional bond, it's kind of hard NOT to at least see possibilities for shipping here.

what really cemented this for me was when we got to season 2 in our most recent tng rewatch. this is a season that early on features riker being extremely excited to serve aboard a klingon ship as part of an officer exchange (to learn about his boyfriend's culture!), and closes with the scene i screencapped at the top of this entry of riker making worf his first officer during the wargames. also somewhere in there riker joins worf on the holodeck for his klingon calisthenics program. they just do everything together, it's so sweet.

also worf dating troi towards the end of tng & riker having clearly had a fling with dax in thomas riker's ds9 appearance really put the icing on this polycule. it's basically just canon. if picard season 3 doesn't give these two some good moments together it's gonna have some 'splainin' to do.

catdora

yes, yes, i'm being boring and shipping a canon couple. here's the thing, though. i literally started watching this show because i knew the central protagonist & antagonist were canonically gay for each other and i'm sorry but i fucking love that shit.

every time catra captures or beats up adora i feel squirmy. and then catra shows up to princess prom in a messy tux and homoerotically/threateningly dances with adora culminating in dipping her??? and guys, my little gay heart can't take it. it's too yummy. HELP.

but then season 5 happens and there's that agonizing apology AND THE RESCUE??? where a swordless adora nevertheless transforms into she-ra THROUGH SHEER FORCE OF GAY WILL & GAY ANGER to protect her kitten???? and i'm sorry, THIS IS EVERYTHING I'VE EVER WANTED OUT OF MAINSTREAM MEDIA, PUT THIS GAY STUFF DIRECTLY INTO MY VEINS.

so yeah i kinda ship them or whatever.

adiray

yeah, yeah, i’m being boring and shipping another canon couple. but i'm sorry??? they're the first trans/nonbinary characters in the history of star trek??? and they're dating each other??? and they're part of a big queer chosen family???

also the episode where we first meet gray is just one of the best episodes of the whole damn franchise? the scene where all of tal's past hosts embrace adira is just so fucking wonderful. and then once gray is literally brought back from the dead he picks just the most epic, wonderful nurturing life direction.

i love these two so much and i want them to be so happy & safe. protecc at all costs!!

lumity

i mean yeah again they're canon but fuck you i only recently started actually getting canon queer couples in shit i watch!!

but yeah seeing these two bring out the best in each other and just being absolute badasses whenever they're fighting to protect each other and also they're powerful witches, just, YEAH this shit rules. and they're so dang sweet.

flick/cj

i'm not nearly as into cj as i am into my beautiful enby punk/goth lizard boy, but i gotta admit they're hella cute together and i want flick to have all the happiness their little gay scalie heart can contain!!!

karai/leo

this is basically down to the fact that in literally every iteration of the two characters, karai bullies the fuck outta leo, and as someone who used to intensely relate to leo because he’s got “the good kid” syndrome something fierce, obviously i always enjoyed seeing her be all femdommy towards him.

nowadays, i tend to relate to donatello more than leo, but i still really enjoy every iteration of karai playing with her food with leo.

also, honorable mention to karai & april from the 2012 cgi series. the episode where karai beats the shit outta april definitely made me feel feelings the first time i saw it. and every time karai defeats or captures her she always calls her “princess” & is all condescending in general, and it’s just, fuuuuuuuuck, it’s SO gay.

also also obviously i ship basically every combination of the four turtles. i mean, duh.

russian winter

i was shocked when rewatching babylon 5 a few years ago how upfront the show was about the relationship between commander susan ivanova & talia winters. in her last appearance on the show, talia slept with ivanova, and in a later episode when everyone on the crew has to tell a deep, personal secret ivanova says that she loved talia. considering we’re talking about the 90s here, that was pretty fucking explicit.

and yeah, there’s an unfinished fic sitting on one of my harddrives about ivanova rescuing her. maybe i’ll try to get back to that at some point, idk! i haven’t been writing much fic lately.

jake sisko/t’lir

jake sisko/enby vulcan, jake sisko/enby vulcan, JAKE SISKO/ENBY VULCAN.

aragorn/legolas/gimli

it’s that thing where you take a very homosocial book and add expanded roles for some of its female characters to make it less homosocial but you change exactly nothing about how emotionally intimate the homosocial relationships are and also both gay people & people who are more conscious of the fact that gay people exist watch your movie, so like, yeah this is kinda inevitable?

gashir

i don’t even give a shit about bashir when he isn’t interacting with garak. he might as well be a non-character.

i fucking love garak he is such an amazing bratty dom. i love watching him play with his food (his food being bashir).

milippa

i mean, burnham has more feelings about georgiou than she does about any of her actual on-screen romantic partners, whether it’s for her gentle mommy domme prime universe georgiou or her badass mean domme mirror universe georgiou. i like michael with book, don’t get me wrong, it’s just hard for me to get as excited for heterosexual relationships as i do for queer headcanons, especially when one of the two participants is a mommy domme.

jaydick

i’m not super invested in this one, especially since it requires dick to be a service top and i think he’s at his most natural as a bottom, but yeah their dynamic has always been pretty charged to the point that the first gay fic i ever wrote was about these two.

[modgirlyreposts-revamped]

Ok thank you.

- I still haven’t decided where I stand on Shadow and spicy food. Thing is, he has a clear tolerance for… WEIRD foods, given he canonically eats straight coffee beans, so I don’t know if he would just be completely unbothered, like you could give him a ghost pepper and he’d eat it with a straight face, but it’s kind of an inside joke between me and Bread that he insists he can eat spicy food just fine, but literally could be taken out by a single buffalo wing and Sonic makes fun of him for it.

- As I’ve mentioned in the past I am a believer of the theory that Amy is a hybrid hedgehog/echidna. Given the echidnas were rapidly dying off, it’s entirely possible she and Knuckles have a shared parent if that’s true. Therefore, siblings. That or they at least share ancestry, and are the only two remaining of their tribe. Therefore, not really siblings, but I like to interpret them as having a familial type relationship.

- Amy is the only person he’ll really listen to even when her requests of him go against his plans. Otherwise he knows what he has to do and that’s what he’s doing.

- Knuckles is of Jamaican and Mesoamerican descent- Knuckles himself being intended to be Jamaican and the echidnas drawing from in particular Aztec and Mayan societies. Sonic is Egyptian, Tails is Japanese, Amy is Romani with Mesoamerican descent, Rouge is French on one side and American on the other, Silver and Blaze are Indian, and Shadow doesn’t really have an ethnicity on account of being genetically engineered. However, his sister figure Maria and her family are Slavic (Russian or Ukrainian is how I imagine them), so Shadow… kinda is?? I guess? And the above applies to Eggman as well because he’s… Maria’s cousin.

- Amy uses exclusively cute anime gifs to express herself over text. Every social media she has has the same y2k girly anime aesthetic. Sonic ends every worrying sentence he types with “lmao.” Tails uses emoticons like :), :[, ^^ and ^-^. Eggman types in all caps with full punctuation, and Knuckles uses no capitals but full punctuation as well.

- Amy doesn’t like horror movies, she thinks they’re gross, but she can sit through one easily. Shadow watches a lot of intense/thriller movies, so maybe on like Halloween, they get together to watch horror movies and Shadow sits super fixated on the story the entire time while Amy laughs at any jumpscare and sits super relaxed the whole time, talking about how she would try to survive if she were there. I feel like she would get PISSED at the ending of The Ring, and as someone else pops out the DVD to switch it for another movie, she’s furiously ranting about how the protagonist “just got lucky! that’s not fair!! what kind of storytelling is that?!” On the flip side, they watch Saw, and she just shrugs and says “it was fine, just an excuse to put some people in a torture room, but fine”

- Sonic can’t sit still for any movies, unless it’s like, John Wick mostly. He likes Keanu Reeves.

- Knuckles speaks both English and Spanish. Both pretty imperfectly, but he can speak both.

As someone who can live off of spicy things, being Asian and all, Shadow being weak af with spicy foods kills me-

[prowerprojects]

Yeah, everyone can use gadgets, but most uses them in the same way. Anyone can use Tails' gadgets; which a testament of his skill and courtesy, but they don't use it in the way HE does nor apply it to work in tangent to his other skills. That shows his innovation as an inventor, tactician, and ability to adapt. You get a style that's uniquely him, it just needs to be shown more and better lights. The potential is there, we've seen it before.

(Also, flight; although not completely exclusive to Tails, is not something most Sonic characters can do without aid, a vehicle or being powered up. And you can do a lot of things with that ability, but the most that's BEING done concerning that is just lifting, transporting or throwing his allies. {For as popular and over-the-top animated aerial fights are in media, it's sad that Tails still hasn't really touch that realm yet. At the same time as mentioned before, not a lot of characters fly naturally, much less any being a huge enemy of his}. And don't get me started on his tails, he's prime to be the poster child of what a lot of animals can do with their tails, and then some.)

Well, I hc Knuckles with Sonic often spar and test each other, and with Tails in exchange for learning more about tech, Knuckles tries to draw Tails' line of strength through prescribed warm-ups. Since the fox wants to stronger. (Also because he thinks Sonic's type of training for Tails is less "disciplined". :P) So, I imagine with Amy [in exchange for trying to break him out of his shell more in social events], Knuckles has someone to earnestly share his ancestry [and personal grievances] to without feeling too awkward. Takes a bit on Amy's part to knock his walls down though.

Anyone can use Tails' gadgets; which a testament of his skill and courtesy, but they don't use it in the way HE does nor apply it to work in tangent to his other skills. That shows his innovation as an inventor, tactician, and ability to adapt. You get a style that's uniquely him, it just needs to be shown more and better lights. The potential is there, we've seen it before.

This all sounds really cool, and I wish it was true, but is it? Do we know this for a fact? (genuine question). I do think that there's definitely a lot of potential for Tails when it comes to a fighting style that utilizes various gadgets and I hope to see it in a game (I'm not sure that Battle counts for real), but I also don't see why at least someone like Rouge for example wouldn't be able to utilize them in a similar way. (Of course, everyone's way of doing things is different, *but*)

I think, the issue with Tails's flight (and what prevents him from having cool aerial fights) is that that for gameplay purposes it's limited to just a few seconds. Plus the fact that his propeller is located on his lower back makes everything awkward. Logically he shouldn't have the same range of movement as Rouge or even Charmy. (Both from the species that evolved to be capable of flight so seems about right) Though, it's not necessarily an issue sonce logically he also shouldn't be able to fly in the first place or spindash.

The fact that Lost World canonized him having prehensile tails is so funny... (and not even that actually, more like the fact that he can control individual hairs of his fur) I know it's probably not gonna be brought up ever again, but I'm gonna keep considering it canon because they Did That.

In exchange, huh. It's kind of funny to think of Knuckles and Tails like "fine I'll let you teach me X if you let me teach you Y". Wjdjdjdjdns.

I could totally see Knuckles being more open with Amy compared to anyone else. Honestly I'm adopting this headcanon into my worldview. Amy helping Knuckles understand the surface world and the social norms, while Knuckles teaches her about his culture... it's really nice.

[alicemichelle297]

The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog (2023) review

When I cranked out my 4000 word review of Sonic Frontiers, I thought that would be the last I talked about a Sonic game for awhile. After all, there were no more games planned to be released any time soon and I didn't figure I'd have much to say about the Frontiers DLC for example. So until I worked on some retro reviews for the series, I figured it'd be on the backburner for a few weeks.

Imagine my surprise when the Sonic social media team released their own game for April Fool's Day: The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog.

And the best part is it's great!

I've never really been one for visual novels, though I am aware of them. I think the only VN in my Steam library is Long Live the Queen (and I wouldn't expect a review of that any time soon, by the way), but I've seen others including some dating simulators on YouTube so I'm familiar with the genre to an extent.

Story

It's Amy's birthday and she's arranged for everyone to join her for a murder mystery dinner party on a luxury train, the Mirage Express.

Sonic, Knuckles, Shadow, Vector, Espio, Rouge and Blaze are all given roles and costumes to match and are asked to put on a mystery for Amy, playing the role of a journalist, and Tails, a detective, to solve.

You play as a poor anthropomorphic animal on their first day working for the Mirage Express. You help Tails sort through the clues and keep the party going.

Gameplay

It's a visual novel, so the gameplay is very simple. Most of the time, you're just going to be reading dialogue and choosing between two dialogue options to advance the story.

During investigation segments, you'll be given a widescreen view of the room and use your mouse pointer to search for clues. Some things are of no consequence, but you never know what you might find.

Then, once you've found enough clues, it's time to confront and interrogate your suspect. The game starts you off easy with a mystery about Amy hiding something from you and Tails before you move on to solving the murder of Sonic.

At key points in the interrogation, you'll have to pick a piece of evidence to support your accusation and then play a mini-game on the "DreamGear" to think through your argument.

The DreamGear mini-game is an isometric style platforming challenge. It's actually interesting to see Sonic at this angle because it hasn't really been done before.

You simply have to jump over hazards like spikes and explosives and collect enough rings to clear the challenge. The first mini-game only requires 10 rings to clear, but by the end of the game you'll need to collect 100 rings to beat the game.

On the bright side, if you just can't get the hang of moving left to right at this awkward angle, you can actually decrease the game's speed and the ring requirements by percentages in the options menu. Perfect for people who are more used to visual novels and not platforming games, not that I know why anyone who doesn't like platforming would be interested in a Sonic game.

Presentation

I. Love. This. Art.

The art director, Min Ho Kim, perfectly renders these characters in a clean and expressive art style.

Each character is dressed up in a costume for Amy's party and yet each one fits their real personalities in a fun way. Tails in a Sherlock Holmes costume just looks right, and Blaze being a tycoon of industry is just fancy enough to suit the inter-dimensional princess. Sonic dressed up as a ship captain weirdly suits him but I half-expected him to start calling us "Old Sport."

The environments are all colorfully and creatively done. Some of the background details are such cute and random references to the wider franchise that the whole game becomes a treat for longtime fans.

The dialogue has plenty of nods to past games, as well, including Sonic Forces and Sonic Frontiers, adding to the streak of recent content forming a consistent continuity. Is this game canon? Probably not, but it's still positioned itself in the IDW/post-Forces continuity, which I'm loving so far.

The Verdict

Is this a bit over-kill for a review of a free Steam game that was literally an April Fool's joke? Yes.

Does it deserve this much attention? Yes.

The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog is a love letter to the entire fandom and it's an easy recommendation from me. Download it now on Steam (while you can, I'm guessing) for Windows and macOS.

[thistimelasttuesday]

fish bowl world

they say they are hammerhead sharks.

when they are obviously not shaped like hammerheads

not with their great bellies above our roof.

they said we need scuba gear so the sharks won't eat us.

they said sharks don't like to eat anything manufactured.

i could not understand for the world what that means.

but they haven't been eating the...

======================================

Fish Bowl World

It was the year we stayed indoors, only half a decade after the entire city had gone underwater. For the most part, the entire population was rattled and anxious because of the uncertainty of our lives, as if we ever actually knew what was going to happen. However, as we all eventually do, we get used to it and forget how odd our situation is. Whatever is present isn’t odd and whatever can fit in a giant’s mouth can be eaten. I am writing this in my living room. The temperature is cold, as it always is these days, and my kids, Felix and Sam, are watching the outside world by the window. They established this habit earlier this year when the sharks finally swam down our street. I didn’t want to feel alone in my feelings, and so I’m memorializing my experiences and my thoughts, in the hopes that maybe when the debris of this modern Atlantis finds its way back home on land, granted that the sun has still not scorched the rest of civilization, someone might be moved and understand what a difficult year it has been for the rest of us and what a difficult life it has and will continue to be.

We learned all kinds of words we didn’t use before this year, like how a group of sharks is called a shiver, which makes a shiver run down your spine when you gaze at their enormous bellies from your roof. Most of the time, they’re quite peaceful and they slowly languid in the sunlight dancing in the waves. It makes me forget how many people are in those bellies and how they’re causing so much chaos in our predictable and programmed lives. Many people say that they needed this break and it was such a blessing, and in many ways, I agree, but I find it callous to say out loud, so I only echo it in my mind whenever I can lie down and feel the slightest warmth from the morning 200 meters away from me. It disappears quickly because a shark would pass by, but some days, they don’t and I get to watch my wife Yves fondly as she works on her paint-by-number set.

None us are sure, not even the government, why the sharks came, where are they from, and how to get rid of them. It’s sad how we haven’t even thought of a flashy, new name for the sharks other than a shiver of sharks. However, let me explain further. The sharks don’t actually hunt and kill us. We can swim out on the street and visit the neighbors or have a lovely dinner by the bistro that served 3 free appetizers on weekends. It’s just that no one knows what could attract the sharks and cause them to go rabid. There’s a difference in their nature that no one knows yet. Some stories get published online about how there are even children who have touched the sharks. It gets drowned out by public criticism since kids shouldn’t go outside when the sharks are so dangerous. Some people think the sharks are so adorable, but some think they’re holograms. They get reprimanded by people whose friends or co-workers were bitten, or worse, eaten by the sharks. But whenever I see them, I see only black eyes like olives and one time, a snaggled tooth by the edge of its mouth.

The sharks look like Great Whites, and most people think they are. But the news says it’s an unidentified species. The news is always done by the presidential spokesperson and his team. I don’t listen to it, but it’s the only way to get information that resembles some form of truth, so one way or another, I hear about it. But it never is enough for me. The same presidential spokesperson said that the sharks were Hammerheads when they first started appearing in January. Every encyclopedia about sharks were sold out because of that, because no one for the life of them knew what a Hammerhead was, but based on my own cross-analysis the sharks actually looked like a very delicate child of the in-breeding of a Basking shark (because of their normal state, when they would just gently swim near the pavement), a Bull shark (because of their thick bodies and their likelihood to attack people), and a Thresher shark (because of their long tail fins). You could imagine why it was hard to believe the presidential spokesperson came to the conclusion that the sharks were Hammerheads—sharks known to have uniquely shaped heads. By March, when the first casualty of the sharks were announced, the presidential spokesperson concluded that these sharks were Great Whites, hence why most people think of them as such. Some respectable people even refer to them as Great Whites, but they’re just unknown, deadly sharks who have found a haven in our underwater city. A month ago, the presidential spokesperson declared that the sharks were a sub-species of stingrays, due to their alleged “electronic” tails that resemble and function like those of stingrays. I’m not sure where he gets that information but people lap it up anyway. Now, the sharks are stingrays and tomorrow, the corals are towns. Who knows?

The TV commercials remind us to make sure our soundproof systems and air systems are on and functioning. If they aren’t functioning well, we should phone 00900-12345 to get it fixed. The bill isn’t grand when you do call them, but they usually have to call them once a month in fear of drowning in the middle of the night. Add all the expenses together, and it does become quite a sum. The soundproofing systems are a precautionary measure because although no one knows what the sharks really want, they do become violent whenever loud vibrations happen in the water. They figured it out when the sharks, as they were thought of as Hammerheads during that time, first showed up around city limits. The military patrol those areas to make sure no people step out of the city and die from lack of oxygen. As reported by word of mouth, it was an ominous scene to watch. I only heard about it when I was buying groceries to stock for a few weeks following the lockdown and the cashier animatedly shared the story, recounting the events and worrying for her own life and family because she still has to man the register so people could eat and go home. That morning, I dropped Felix at school and Sam at the day care, and Yves and I went our separate ways to work.

“It was like the Jaws theme song was playing! My neighbor’s kid was on patrol and suddenly, in the distance, they started seeing the outline of the sharks. You know the city limits? They’re scary! It’s endless deep blue that goes on and on and on. It gives me the shivers! And then, a shiver of sharks! You know that’s what they say on the news, yeah? A group of sharks is called a shiver. Anyway, they opened fire at the sharks and guess what? A bloodbath. They started eating and biting the military guys. My neighbor’s kid, he ran and called for back-up, but the general said to fall back or else, they’ll be massacred! That’s how the sharks got in! Dum-dum-dum-dum!” She finished off with the Jaws theme song. I saw Jaws with my family too, a week when the sharks came in. It did not help Yves with her jitters and the kids couldn’t sleep by themselves for a while, so we slept in the same bedroom for months. We couldn’t help but watch the sharks swim above our homes during those few months, so a lot of us were restless. It was all over social media, the way we coped with the situation.

After a few weeks of observation, the military general (the “highest” guy) concluded that the sharks didn’t like extremely loud vibrations in the water. Everything made sense. The guns were too loud and the intercity submarines were too, so transportation was halted. Most of us had to swim to work, so decent companies issued a work from home set-up. Regular schooling was out of the question, so children are being educated through Tube School. They send us videos of teachers in little tubes brought by the Messenger Fish and issued by the government. That’s where I learned that sharks sensed the vibrations through sonic waves. Granted, that didn’t explain much as it was for 5th graders like Felix but making sense of one small thing can do so much for someone who is blindly groping in the dark.

That lesson was delivered by a science teacher. You ask where are the scientists in this story? There are no scientists these days. No person in the right mind will exclaim that they are a scientist because all the scientist in every field of science have been forced to work at the air systems. They maintain the air that we breathe inside our houses. No one knows how they do it, but everyone knows that it’s the reason why not a lot of people study to become scientists these days. There are science teachers in schools but most science-related work is for the service of the people. It is modern slavery as people are held against their will and the military will do all sorts of “bargaining” with you. You will be called noble but you will never be able to see your family, that’s what being a scientist is like in the underwater city.

Now, everyone is only adequately knowledgeable of science, which isn’t good for the year of trial and error in order to get rid of the sharks. The presidential spokesperson advised the people to stay indoors as much as they can, but we’re about a year in, so some people have been going out with dusty diving gear. They swim with the sharks to do normal people stuff, and although I think it’s incredibly reckless, it’s also very human of them to do so. I go out the garden sometimes, just to wet the diving gear and brush the kelp I’ve been growing. It’s the little things that keep me busy.

[aur0raaura]

Sonic Forces - Thoughts and Opinions [SPOILERS!!]

Sonic Forces has a lot of lost potential. From the execution of the narrative, to the level designs in it’s entirety...with...some exceptions.

It kept me wanting more...but it left me hanging.

I can’t say it’s bad, but I can’t say is amazing, it’s just an okay game with some fun elements and a good base of ideas. The sad part is that they didn’t fully flesh things out. Was it time? Was it dev problems? Who knows.

I know that they’re gaining their footing in gameplay and the direction they want to go in Sonic, but if they don’t step out of their comfort zone, actually take their time and do a good product instead of a 4hr long game, maybe we’ll see the return of those grand level designs from the Adventure Series and Unleashed (Day Stages) in the modern era.

Same thing with the story, it was a great direction! But so many little details were lost in it- with some friends in a stream, we talked about some points that could have been great for the game, example:

Classic Sonic is also the one from Mania...in which also is the one from Generations but due to the events of that game, Classic Sonic’s timeline sort of split from the one Modern remembers....err- yeah-

Now, this Classic Sonic should be aware that the chaos emeralds are useless against the Ruby right? Then imagine if you could get Super Sonic in the game, go face infinite as some sort of epic show down and, despite Classic Sonic hinting everyone that it won’t work, they just tried anyways and failed! That would have been amazing! Also, the fact that Tails was so neglected...oh god that made me a bit mad... i love Tails ok-

OH and another thing, WHY MAKE INFINITE HAVE SUCH A BACKSTORY LIKE- IT COULD HAVE BEEN DONE BETTER SURE- I WOULD HAVE LOVED SOME RIVALRY WITH SHADOW BUT NOT SOME “I’M NOT WEAK!” CHRIST.

...ok...Aura...calm down... -ahem-

I think my message can come across right? Sonic Forces is a game where had an opportunity to be the comeback of modern sonic, but really- I guess they’re still not getting out of their comfort zone.

I can’t agree over the fact that it could be because of the whole “a chunk of the gamers as a whole don’t have time to play a long game” because people LOVE long games, they would look forward to play them, they would wait to get back and play it on their free time. Especially if it has replayability. SEGA needs to see what they got right and what they got wrong, We’re not stupid. We’re not kids. Most of the fanbase is already skilled enough to have challenges. We want a fast pace, adrenaline inducing sonic game with a long, entertaining story, enjoyable and diverse level designs. I want to learn the different routes of a level. I want to see that my first run could be different from others. I want to enjoy finding secrets like the collectibles and all. What I need is to see my blue hedgehog rise against the adversity and unfair judgement of the franchise. Just because 06, Lyric and Chronicles were bad, that doesn’t mean the whole series is trash. Grow up.

Sonic Forces made me smile at times, enjoying the moments i had with my custom character, making me think of scenarios that could have been in the game n stuff- It made me see that maybe, just maybe, Sonic Team could just get themselves together and pour actual time, effort and just think of the specific things that fans would enjoy- TRULY ENJOY and make a game that could satisfy us...

But that can only be done if they stop thinking of doing the minimum, and break boundaries. Sonic is all about running free, seeing sights you could never see in speeds nobody can achieve normally.

I’m no game dev, I’m just an animation student, but I know one thing: attention to detail, paying close attention with your fans and bringing that feedback to the devs, fix what was wrong and add what was missing from the previous game is essential. I know now we live in an era where now companies can have more direct feedback than ever. The social media accounts are aware. People from the staff are aware.

They’re not stupid.

So please, SEGA, if you ever read these kinds of opinions on these games, PLEASE TELL THEM TO SONIC TEAM. What we need is for these ideas to be fixed and fleshed out better. I know I might repeat myself on things but, it’s the one thing you must do. Get out from making short games. It’s time to do an experience. It’s time to make a Sonic game.

...

I just hope that the day we get an amazing Sonic game is sooner than we think...

But Forces...made me see a step in the right direction.

Ho man- that was kind of long but i needed to get it out of my chest. Sorry.

I think the one thing I hope to see once again is more customization if there’s an option to make a custom hero again...

Ohtani did amazing with the soundtrack, I’m in love with the avatar stage level music (especially Space Port and Aqua Road.....and Imperial Tower....and...actually no- i love them all).

Just- If only the level design and the story being fleshed out more it would have been an amazing Sonic.

Oh well. Here’s for a better one in the future.

[turntothree]

During the Break: Build-A-Hedgehog

Dateline – April 12, 2017

Nintendo is riding high after the overnight success of the Switch and to keep that hype train firmly on track, it airs another of its promotional Direct packages. Jam-packed with A-Listers like Splatoon 2, Fire Emblem Echoes and Arms, the broadcast is a ratings smash!

But in the midst of The Big N’s biggest hits, what got the most attention (at least from fans on the Internet) was the first full gameplay trailer for Sonic Forces. It was pretty good.

...

Editor’s Note: Is that all you have to say?

Well, we got to see Modern Sonic dash and soar through Eggman’s Bad Future like it was some sort of dystopian rollercoaster, while Classic Sonic got to run the vintage Green Hill Zone obstacle course. Both gameplay styles got ample time to show off their pretty set pieces as well as a satisfying impression of speed, momentum and impact.

Granted, it was only a 30 second clip, but it was a nice little indication that Sonic Team went back to what made these mechanics work so well together in Sonic Generations. Perhaps with some added tweaks, this 2526th anniversary milestone will be just as special as its year 20 counterpart. Or at the very least something that might break the “Sonic Cycle”.

Editor’s Note: Gotta keep that emphasis on might.

I guess that about covers it. Don’t forget to like, comment and re-blog; oh and stay tuned fo...

Editor’s Note: *AHEM!*

Heh heh. It seems I forgot to address the shadowy figure stoically lingering in the room.

Yeah, as good as the trailer was, it wasn’t the gameplay that caught the public’s interest but rather the captivating secret that brought it to the finish line.

For an entire month, Sonic fans had been trying to solve the mystery of this unknown Player Three’s identity. Then suddenly, SEGA lifted the cowl...*Sigh*

Editor’s Note: Even knowing what we know now, you still want to discuss your theory, don’t you?

I spent so much time putting it together....how was I supposed to know the reveal would happen before E3?

Editor’s Note: It shouldn’t have taken you weeks to put it together in the first place. But since you worked so hard, have at it. Just make it quick.

OK! So, after digging through every hedgehog, fox, echidna, bat, cat, rabbit, flicky and sniper in Sonic Team’s sketchbook, I narrowed my list down to five possible suspects. My findings were based solely on the curious critter’s fashion sense.

Editor’s Note:  Pop monarch shoes, ruffled up socks and Mouseketeer gloves. Yup, it’s a Sonic character all right.

After a rigorous process of elimination, five became two.

Editor’s Note: Uh-huh. “Rigorous.” Looking at ear shapes and checking for patagium doesn’t take a whole lot of time, dude.

*Cough* Anyway, two resisters remained; the iconic pairing of Sonic & Tails, no less. Upon a second glance at Mr. Prower, I thought I had the mystery solved.

Everything from the fashion choices to the shape of his head and whiskers, he seemed like the perfect candidate. Yup, I was confident it was Tails...until I saw this model lacked Miles’ big bushy namesakes - them tails.

That just left Sonic.

Editor’s Note: Hey, did you ever consider Antoine? 

I’m quite familiar with that fan theory and I’d be lying if I didn’t also consider him a (somewhat) strong possibility. This whole thing with Eggman ruling the world definitely had an air of Archie to it, and the publisher did commission mock game assets of the Knothole characters to celebrate the Sonic comic’s 2014 revamp. Not to mention the Guinness award winning series is celebrating its own 25-year milestone, so a monumental crossover seemed like a good way to mark the occasion. Also, he was a perfect match for the silhouette. But I had to rule him out.

Editor’s Note: If chilidogs can exist in Sonic Team’s universe, why not Coyotes and Acorns?

Mainly, it’s a matter of licensing issues and “pending” cancellation.

Editor’s Note: Two years on television and 25 years in print. The Freedom Fighters had a good run.

Anyway, that just left Sonic and I think you know where I’m going with this.

Player One is the Sonic we know and Player Two is the Sonic we knew, so I think it would stand to reason Player Three 3 could’ve been the hedgehog Sonic could become.

Editor’s Note: Past, Present and Future all accounted for. That’s a mighty safe deduction, Sherlock. Also, that’s Sonic’s Uncle Chuck, you chuckle head.

As I was saying, I had a feeling SEGA may have wanted to celebrate a quarter century of Sonic games by shaking up the gameplay formula, while using the time travel plot device as a segue.

Editor’s Note: Unnecessary mechanical shake-ups has kinda been Sonic Team’s M.O. for like a decade now. You might as well have assumed this “Future Sonic” would be blue.

Look, I’m not talking low end shake-ups like making the levels spherical or adding a werehog. I’m talking a momentous shift on par with The Blue Blur speeding out on his first grand Adventure. If you’d grant me the pleasure, I’d be more than happy to explain it in excruciating detail.

Editor’s Note: Dude, seriously. This whole rant has been way too slow. Can we just shine a light on this mascot already?

*Groan* It’s the 26th anniversary, it’s a new generation of hardware, and Forces is the first multi-platform Sonic release in over half a decade. So, I figured Sonic Team would celebrate in a big way and what would be bigger than letting this anonymous animal take a new hedgehog engine out for a test spin?

Editor’s Note: I’m waiting!

OK, OK. [Clears Throat] During the 16-Bit glory years, The Fastest Thing Alive was a side-scrolling speedster and starting back from his transition into 3D, Sonic’s been turbo driving in tunnel vision from a fixed third-person vantage point.

Editor’s Note: EXPLAIN FASTER!

I FIGURED THE NEXT BIG SPRINT WOULD BE A PERSPECTIVE CHANGE!

Perhaps we’d finally get a taste of the open road strictly from a hedgehog point of view, like say the FPSonic short made by PIPOCA.

Or maybe we’d see the tried and true third-person tracks evolve to include multiple axes, like in the brilliant Sonic Utopia tech demo by Mr. Lange. 

...Or if Sonic Team didn’t want to change too much, I would have suggested it take advantage of the Forces gimmick and allow Sonic Tois to pass the piton to one of his many friends in order clear out enemy lines or solve puzzles. Think an updated Sonic Heroes or Knuckles Chaotix.    

Editor’s Note: But just as you pasted it together, your “Old Man Sonic” theory ran into a wall.

Dateline – May 16, 2017

SEGA releases another trailer and it focuses squarely on the identity of the third character. Fans gasp with baited breath as the vale was lifted to reveal...a random wolf guy.

Editor’s Note: Can’t say I saw that one coming.

It felt a tad anti-climatic, even though seeing him use a grapping hook to tie up a couple of giant Egg Robos was pretty cool...I guess.

Editor’s Note: Look man, you were wrong; you got to get over it. Also, now that I think of it, Sonic’s head is much too big to fit the silhouette, so you would’ve been wrong anyway. And don’t say he could have gotten a haircut. Sonic would never tame those quills.

Right. Well, before I could register Wolfy the Wolfboy as a new lead, the trailer got its second, third, fourth and fifth wind with the shocking twist this third player is in fact, an “Original Character”.

Editor’s Note: As in - Do Not Steal!?

You see, this charming customer is just one of thousands of possibilities players can dream up using a nifty creator tool and a little bit of imagination. With a long line of clothing options and a choice of one of seven spirit animals, players will be able to make a character that is distinctive to their personality.

As an added bonus, each of the seven classes has its own unique stat boost.

Wolves have magnetic personalities (rings for days). Dogs bounce back from death with five bonus rings. Cats cheat death by clinging to a single ring after taking damage. Birds are of the flightless variety but can still get air via a double jump. Bears are the heavies of the group and pack a powerful punch with their homing missile. Rabbits get a little extra time to race around with an I-flash damage boost.  And of course, Hedgehogs can pick up the rings they drop after taking a hit.

Editor’s Note: Based on those parameters, I think we might get overrun with re-coloured Sonics...not that there’s anything wrong with that. You do you, Archie did it too, creativity starts somewhere, etc. Speaking of stat boosts and buffs and other such mechanical things, what sort of play style will these OCs adhere to?

Oddly enough, there’s no perspective change or efforts made to shake up everything we know about Sonic. Instead, Sonic Team chose to make avatars playable in both modern and classic styles, but with a twist.

Do you remember the Wisps from Sonic Colors? They’re back...sort of. Throughout the game, each player character will be collecting an assortment of gadget’s called Wispens. Like the Wisps, these trinkets grant special abilities that can be used to take out enemies or to make racing through levels more expedient. 

Editor’s Note: I’m sorry you set yourself up for disappointment.

After thinking on it a bit, this surprisingly safe move was the right one. I don’t want to dig too deep (because that’s a topic for another time) but it took Sonic Team a good long time to get Sonic to run smoothly in 3D. Choosing to step away from all that progress just to give a milestone anniversary some extra publicity could’ve have lead to disaster, much like some of The Blue Blur’s previous gimmicks. Instead, fans are being treated to a neat new spin on what works.

As for the Create-a-Character concept, now that I’ve seen it, I’m surprised SEGA hasn’t capitalized on the whole fan fiction aspect of the fandom before. Sonic surfers can’t go through any social media network, fan forum, or artist alley without finding fan characters of all shapes, sizes, species and colours. With such a cluster of “original” critters, this seems like a million dollar idea.

Editor’s Note: I can think of a couple why nots.

*Sigh* I would be lying if I said I didn’t have some concern for Sonic Forces. As pointed out by...just about everyone, its fan fiction plotline opens it up for being absorbed into that “weirdness”. That said however, I don’t think it’s necessarily fair to rain on the CAC parade.

The majority of these fanfic authors are youngsters that love this series and day dream of seeing their silly side-characters race side-by-side with Sonic. Forces granting their wish is not only a profitable proposition for SEGA, it also encourages and inspires these kids to continue creating. I would like to think that goodwill offsets any potential *cough* naughtiness. 

Editor’s Note: Now that I think of it, said “naughtiness” would be unavoidable anyway just by virtue of being a Sonic game.

...

Editor’s Note: Between disproven theories, big reveals and potential mishaps, I think you’ve covered all the bases. You want to take this home?

Sonic’s 26-year rat hedge race has certainly been eventful. He’s had some incredible highs, embarrassing lows, and is now riding a stable return through the loop. Every moment of triumph, every stumble, every second wind, every trip up and third wind, The Blue Blur has had a loyal and dedicated pack of fans to run alongside him every step of the way.

They grew up in the trenches together and now they stand tall as a battlefield collective, ready to spin dash their way through the Eggman Empire and onward to freedom!

As a quarter-century celebration of its mascot and the fans that made him an industry icon, Sonic Team (probably) couldn’t have done any better than this.

...At least in the event Forces fails to win the day, Headcannon and Taxman will be there to save us with Sonic Mania.

Sorry about all the delays and such. I believe I’m on track now. So, I can say with confidence that you can Stay Tuned fo...

What’s this? It appears my plans for an Undertale review have been rained out, so to speak.

It’s convention season and with big moves being made and many more still to come, my creative energies would be better spent elsewhere, for now.

Huh...well, with that notice out of the way, Stay Tuned for a resistance of a different sort.

Reader discretion is advised.

Research Sources: Nintendo, SEGA, Comic Book Resources, Bleeding Cool, Polygon and IGN

[kintsugi-sheep]

2020.12.13: The Beginning and Writing

Alright, so what went on this week?

I feel like I'm getting better at writing more frequently. The frequency being the issue first, the editing and grammar being the secondary issue. My diction's a little smaller than I'd like it to be, so I'll be sure to catch up on some reading by the time my vacation comes around.

I've noticed a lot of the prompts that I pull from Reddit tend to be written in the first person. I understand the function, as it allows a reader to become fully immersed in exactly what a character is thinking and feeling in any given moment, but I find that it more often than not covers up my poor grammatical skills.

Also, trying to get these all done in one run-through, without going back to edit or reformat between posting sites, is pretty cringe-inducing. There's nothing like writing an actually decent story, only to realize that the site you posted it to reformatted the entire thing so that all of the text is in one big block.

When I get to coding, I should be sure to look for any issue like this on the site.

I also learned how transparent it is when you slack off. One day this past week I wasn't feeling my writing and I can tell the people that did read it weren't feeling it either. I have to stay focused, not so much motivated. Sitting around waiting for motivation has done nothing but cause me trouble and shape me into a procrastinator.

That being said, I do have to keep my desire to leave at the forefront of my mind.

It's a strange feeling I get when I think about my family. Maybe I listened to too much Bush-era American rock music, but I'm tired of my hometown.

For a number of reasons.

But, when it comes to my family, I just get the sinking feeling that they're fine with everything around them being less than ideal. That they'll complain about something someone else needs to do for them rather than take the time to look inward. They aren't so unreasonable as to thrust all of their issues onto strangers or things like that. You could compare their grievances to things like, "This person who's job it is to do this things isn't doing this thing specifically how I want it to be done."

Whereas I'm trying to shift my response to be, "Can I do this thing? No? Screw it then."

As such, I'm actively no longer complaining.

No asking if someone else can turn the music down because I have work in the morning. No explaining why breeding the dog is a terrible, terrible idea. No asking why every room in the house smells like weed. Just me, focusing on getting out so I don't have to concern myself with these issues.

Because of all the people here, I'm the only one who seems to have an issue with any of this.

I've spent the last three years rooming with a friend in a shared apartment and did nothing but goof off because I had my friend around.

And this is the result of that goofing off. Back in my childhood home, typing away at a computer at night following a day of working. My job may be better than it was when I was at my lowest point in 2015-16, but I can't let my contentment with my job lead me to more complacency with my future.

I need to work harder.

I get this sinking feeling in my stomach whenever I think about what I should be doing. In the context of this, so many things cross my mind.

"It's getting late. Aren't you going to write 750 words today?"

"That last writing prompt bombed pretty hard, so why not take a day off?"

"It's Sunday. Are you going to post another one of those blogs on the internet?"

"No one's going to read it, you know?"

"You quit before and you'll quit again. How long do you think you can keep this up?"

"Your writing is terrible. Third-person, first-person, blog, it's all trash that's going to be ignored."

"Is this title/phrase/sentence just you trying to be baity? Do you think that's going to give you clicks?"

"Who do you really think is going to read this? You post in the dead of night and work all day, idiot."

"No one likes social media. Do something else."

"Magic the Gathering has better stories than you do."

"Critical Role has better stories than you do."

"The SCP Foundation has better stories than you do."

"All of your favorite mangaka have better stories than you do."

"You ever think that now that they're remaking Shaman King, that niche thing that you thought only you still cared about and had an opinion on will suddenly become mainstream, gain all the acclaim it deserves, and your take on the story will be drowned out by a plethora of actually competent reviewers who actually chose to go to school for things like English and Literature and Journalism?"

"I know that going to school again would damn you in the future, but don't you think it'd at least be a little better than trying to become known through scratch?"

"Trick question; you'll fail either way."

"You really padded this out didn't you? It may just end up getting bunched up on DeviantArt again though."

A friend of mine asked me a few months ago if writing was my passion. And I told her yes.

But, I don't know if that's true.

I love making up stories. The first story I ever created was spawned from a terrible, terrible drawing.

My friend Emmanuel had broken his arm riding his bike, so I drew a hero called 'Kast Man, King of the Kanyon'; the words were spelled with Ks because it was the early 2000s and there was nothing a K or Z couldn't sell. The drawing was exactly what you'd expect of a six-year-old who liked Dragon Ball Z. The guy was overly-buff in an non-biologically acceptable way, had upright, spiky hair, a monkey's tail, and no ears because he was facing forwards and you couldn't see ears from the front I decided.

From this one-off drawing, I began visualizing a theme song that was just the hero's name and title followed by the occasional "Ooooh"; as you would expect from a six-year-old who liked Sonic the Hedgehog.

I got into the habit of taking aspects from all the different media I consumed, mostly animated, and marrying them into one, jumbled mess of a story. This also led to me talking to myself. I didn't know why, but I just really needed to talk to myself and narrate this story happening in my head.

We used to keep a lot of rubber bands around the house for reasons I don't know and my imagination would be most active when I was playing with one. I frequently snapped them on my wrists, chewed on them, stretched them, broke them, and slept with them. When I accidently flung one in the midst of play, it was like watching television and having the power cut out. I'd just stop abruptly and frantically try to look for it. And, if I couldn't find it, I'd get a tight feeling in my chest and resign myself to sleep, unable to see the conclusion of my story until I picked up another rubber band.

This habit really freaked out the people who lived with me; mom, grandmother, uncle, and brother. To this day none of them realize what was going on.

The habit eventually switched to pencils, which I thankfully didn't sleep with, until it reached the point where I didn't need a tool of any sort at all.

This is where things got out of hand. You know how when you were younger and you saw an action movie, you'd have all this energy and just move your body in all these bizarre ways because it felt good? Like you could take on the world?

That was the next step throughout middle school.

And throughout high school.

And throughout college.

And throughout my return home.

And throughout living with my roommates.

We called it "pacing" in my house hold. Though, more often than not, if featured punching, jogging, skipping, jumping, and lots of talking to myself. I'd been caught multiple times by relatives and friends, none understanding what was going on.

Imagine getting caught masturbating, but having someone walk in every other day and everyone hearing you do it everyday.

I really toned it down while living with my roommates and now I'll just take a break to walk the floor, legitimately pacing this time, and get my thoughts together. The talking-to-myself hasn't stopped though.

It feels a little nice to explain this somewhere, even if no one but me will ever see it.

So, pulling it back to my friend's question about writing being my passion. I don't think it is.

Storytelling is my passion. I can pitch ideas, share events, or retell things I've heard, read, or seen with ease and confidence. The part wherein I have to sit down and write is the frustration, exhausting part. But, it gives me a sense of accomplishment when I'm done.

So I don't think writing is my passion. Storytelling is my passion, writing is my purpose and the medium through which I am most effectively able to share my stories.

And given how fulfilled I feel when I'm completed, and on the occasion that someone does respond to something I've written, I consider what I'm doing worthwhile. I just have to get focused on the act of doing rather than the end result.

That's what I need to do.