#sonic colors

[rlly-dont-care]

Some sonic art

[lore-of-mobius]

The following is a good read. But I also want to expand upon this.

So they talk about anti colonialist themes in the Sonic Colors as Eggman is colonizing several planets and destroying the plant life and harming the the Wisps. But here is the interesting thing, Eggman has had basically colonizer themes since the beginning.

So first off it is established in TailsTube #1 (feat. Sonic) Sonic ands friends live on an alternate version of Earth with more fantastical elements like the Little Planet. But as I discussed in a previous post we learn humans inhabit the mainland while anthropomorphic animals like Sonic inhabit the islands. This actually makes Eggman, a human coming from the mainland to these islands the trying to takeover these islands and oppress it's inhabitants. While Eggman does have dreams of world domination and can deal with the Guardian Unit Of Nations, it is noteworthy is main target to basic pick on is the inhabitants of these islands.

This is further seen in how Eggman plays the role of a tomb raider in several games. Note, I am not trying to say you can or cannot enjoy games like Tomb Raider. So in Sonic The Hedgehog 1's Japanese manual and the Encyclo-speed-ia Eggman is at South Island tearing it up looking for the Chaos Emeralds. "Huh. I'll make sure to find the Chaos Emeralds, even if I'll have to dig up the whole island.' Doctor Eggman built a huge fortress on one corner of the island and embarked on his plan." He is coming in and destroying the ruins of places like Labyrinth Zone just to snag the Chaos Emeralds. Or when he was after the Treasure Of Babylon.

This becomes more apparent in the third game when he uses his drills to tear up Labyrinth Zone and eventually steals the Master Emerald from the last echidna, Knuckles. And as future games have established, the Knuckles Clan are heavily coded to represent certain things. With that context Eggman is just straight up stealing this object that doesn't belong to him while destroying the ruins.

He continues on so many islands such as the Northstar Island and is called Carnival Island(I wonder why). He does the same to the Little Planet, and while the Zeti were evil Eggman did invade the Lost Hex and disturb them for his own evil plans.

There is also the fact that he torments the small animals for no other reason than to get under Sonic's skin. "But this time, oh my… Something's not right. 'You see, Sonic?! This time it's different. I've turned all the animals on the island into robots.' 'Y-You guys!' 'They'll all do what I tell them to. In other words, the whole island is your enemy. Hahahahaha… cough cough. This time, the whole world will be mine.'" He doesn't need to power his machines with Flickies and whatnot as evident by several robots like Metal Sonic and Hey Ho, and the fact is Egg Walker is powered by Chaos Drives. He just does for the torment of the animals and Sonic.

Speaking of which in The Murder Of Sonic The Hedgehog we get the implication Eggman lends his tech and Badniks out to others as a source of income, alongside the creation of casinos to get money as well. This is further backed up in Sonic Twitter Takeover #5 - All Answers at 11:53 when he mentions he is rich and gets money to build what he builds from several sources of income.

Speaking of theme of Sonic Colors and the destruction Eggman brough to the Wisps, there is Sweet Mountain and we learn about it in said interview at 4:45. Eggman created the sweets that make up Sweet Mountain and they are made from preservatives that come from Chemical Plant Zone. Not trying to play off of chemophobia, but this does indeed play into the themes nature vs industrialism in the games. As the sweets are made from chemicals from one of the most obvious pollution sites in the Sonic franchise. Also, we can't forget Oil Ocean Zone's existence. Heck this side of Eggman is seen in the concept art with Eggman Industries.

Also, more on the Solar Punk themes it is noteworthy that Sonic games do take inspiration from Hayao Miyazaki's work, which is most obvious through the existence of Angel Island. And do I really really need to explain how Miyazaki's work ties into solarpunk?

But also the solarpunk themes can be best seen in how the inhabitants of the islands like Sonic and his friends choose to live. We get to see places like Amy's house being out in nature for example, and Tails while he love technology still keeps nature around him as well unlike Eggman. On top of that the cities like Sunset City are depicted to have nature interwoven into the cities and towns the inhabitants of these islands live in.

Solarpunk Ideals and Aesthetics in Sonic Colors

--according to one Solarpunk Sonic fan specifically but dude trust me on this.

This post is the sequel/follow up to my previous post on Sonic the Hedgehog (the character) and Solarpunk Ideals, feel free to give that a read for some context! But for a basic run-down--Sonic the Hedgehog (the Dude) embodies several core Solarpunk tenants in his personality, Dr. Eggman is the antithesis to Solarpunk both in personality and in resulting actions, and I'm such a big nerd I had to split this post into 2 parts and they're still long as hell.

Special reminder: I am a Sonic nerd, have been for 10+ years now. I also have Write Too Much disease. I am going to talk. A lot. Prepare yourselves.

Special reminder part 2: Sonic the Hedgehog is not a perfect franchise, and it's owned by a corporation in the capitalistic hellscape we call life and I promise you I am aware of that. I'm not saying SEGA is Solarpunk, I am saying that parts of their franchise have Solarpunk elements. If I post this and someone skips this paragraph to instead rant at me about some unrelated shit that SEGA the Corporation Guys did That One Time Months/Years Ago I may snap. You have been warned.

Shout out to @modern-solarpunk for being a beta reader for this! Thank you for making sure I was actually being legible and coherent with this.

Let's dive right in.

Sonic Colors Let's Go Let's Go

Sonic Colors came out on the Nintendo Wii in 2010, with an alternate version made for the Nintendo DS. I’ve only played the Wii version, so we’re going to talk about the Wii version. We later got an 11 minute 2D animated short about the game, to celebrate the release of Sonic Colors: Ultimate (which was basically a remake for the Switch). Basic plot synopsis below.

Dr. Eggman claims that he’s turned over a new leaf and has created the Egg Planet Park to make up for his past deeds. Sonic is inherently suspicious, so he and Tails sneak in and start busting up Eggman’s latest evil plot--tying down planets and kidnapping alien creatures called Wisps and harnessing their powers to charge up a mind control ray and make Earth the star attraction of his space theme park. Sonic and Tails promptly set about stopping him, destroying the Eggman robots on each planet and freeing as many wisps as they can while they do so. Feel free to check out this video to see all the cutscenes.

“Ani, what’s Solarpunk about that? A space theme park made by chaining down planets is already pretty unrealistic--” let me get there.

First off, the storyline has resistance and anti-industrialization baked into it. In a sense, we’ve got anti-colonialism too (though by all means DO NOT take this as me comparing the immeasurable harms done to colonized peoples by their oppressors to little fictional alien dudes getting their juices sucked out. But Eggman literally is colonizing several planets). Since Sonic is fighting a villain who’s trying to turn all of space into his robotic wonderland, we are too--and we see this guy as the villain, since he is, which can make people think about how these themes play into other aspects of life. Or at least I did in the fifth grade. Bear with me here.

If you don’t wanna watch 50+ minutes of cutscenes originating from 2010s-era script writing, let’s look at a quote that I feel boils the solarpunk-adjacent parts of the storyline to its bare essentials.

In the 11 minute animated short, Rise of the Wisps, there’s a bit more. First off, we see the aliens resisting a bit more--in fact, there’s a group of little Wisp freedom fighters working to save other wisps before they’re… harvested, I guess is the word for it.

Do they have names? No. But in Sonic Colors we don’t even really see any Wisps with characterizing traits aside from Yacker, so I think having the next few be a band of freedom fighters is pretty cool.

Asides from admiring the visual style of this short (because man Sonic in 2D animation just feels right to me), there’s a quote that I feel fits the Solarpunk outlook on community and problem solving.

“When the problem seems too big to solve on your own, you do what you can. And maybe ask for a little help from your friends. Right?”

Like if I put that in the middle of any other Solarpunk post no one would bat an eye but I’m literally quoting Sonic the Hedgehog here.

The series as a whole, especially Sonic Colors in my eyes, is imbued with hope and standing strong in the face of difficult challenges--leaning on your friends for help when you need to accomplish bigger and better things than you can do on your own. In Sonic, that means defeating giant mech bots or mutated lizards trying to crash land on Earth or purify the world of an out of control zombot virus. For us? That can be restoring a native landscape, vouching for clean energy, starting a community garden, and fighting for what we believe in.

Now let’s talk aesthetics

The Aesthetics of Sonic Color

So we’ve got 5 planets (Sweet Mountain, Starlight Carnival, Planet Wisp, Aquarium Park, and Asteroid Coaster) and two parts of the main park (Tropical Resort and Terminal Velocity) that are playable zones in Sonic Colors. But what’s the most Solarpunky area to me?

Planet Wisp

Planet Wisp is described in the fandom wiki as “a beautiful natural planet full of vegetation and tall trees. The Area takes place during daytime, though stars can also be seen in the sky.” Another page on Planet Wisp says “when seen from space, it heavily resembles Earth,” but its not very big--described as “tiny” in the game. However, it has a wealth of “untouched, unspoiled and unmatched natural beauty”, full of blue-gray rocky canyons and mountains with valleys and fields, rock pillars, etc. covered by plants. The trees are extremely tall, with platform-tops and no other main branches. There’s also lakes and creeks. There’s a minimal level of urbanized civilization--mostly tree slides made from branches and roots and platforms and such. Overall, simplistic stuff--”its untouched nature being largely preserved by the Wisps’ harmonious way of living in nature.” which sounds great! Except this is before interference by Doctor Eggman. Afterwards, “Planet Wisp has large amounts of factories under construction, tearing apart the original plant life and rock and replacing it with red metal.” Eggman Empire-style structures like towers, half-pipes, and roads are clustered around the landscape, and there’s an unknown purple liquid polluting several bodies of water. So! Not all that great! 

‘Ani why do you find that Solarpunk?’ two reasons

A: We the player are literally here to defy the people building the factories so the planet can continue to be full of vegetation and home to its native creatures.

B: it’s pretty, okay? It’s fukin cool.

This map is so cool it was also featured in Sonic Generations (2011) and Team Sonic Racing (2019), so let’s find some pics!

But most of all, the music, you guys.

And here are some other versions of these tracks from subsequent games (Sonic Generations, Sonic Colors Ultimate) and tracks inspired by the Planet Wisp location (Team Sonic Racing)

These tracks. Especially the original ones, but oh my god these tracks. I cannot emphasize enough I feel like. These tracks feel like you uncorked a bottle labeled ‘hope, positivity, relief’ and put it to your ear. And what is Solarpunk about if not hope.

Speaking of Solarpunk and being about hope, let’s talk about the main theme for the Sonic Colors game--Reach for the Stars. If you couldn’t tell by the title alone, this song is also the embodiment of hope--in more of an upbeat, ‘we’ve got this together!’ kind of vibe, but it’s still important to me and also feels Solarpunky (at least Solarpunk-adjacent) so let’s talk about it!

(I ran out of audios I can add so we're getting Youtube Videos instead)

“I’m gonna reach for the stars, although they look pretty far! I’m gonna find my own way, and take a chance on today!” - as Solarpunks, we are reaching for the stars (the sun in particular I suppose) to find hope in a brighter future and share it with others. We’ve all got our own way of doing it, with solutions varying based on individual situations as well as what community efforts can yield, but even still we are daring to dream of a brighter future than the one most often visualized in popular culture. No matter what, we’re gonna keep striving to make changes and create a brighter world for ourselves and those who come after us.

“Just take a chance, we’ll do it right again (we’re gonna reach for the stars!) Just take my hand, we’ll take a chance tonight, reach for the stars, tonight!”

You know what else Solarpunks go crazy about? Community building! You know what else Sonic Colors covers musically? Community building! Or, more so, being open to other people’s viewpoints and communicating to resolve problems, but still!

Now keep in mind, this song is literally based around Sonic and Tails trying to communicate with an alien via a translator, but my point still stands let’s look at some lyrics.

“I’ve been here before, and I know that we must stand up tall! I’m not scared to ask when I’m not sure; we can overcome it all!” - what is community if not being able to lean on other people? Community support, mutual aid, working together to solve problems big and small, Solarpunks have got it!

“If you could tell me how to lend a hand, I would try to understand! No words could say how much I care! Together we can take a stand!” 

And let us not forget the refrain! “Speaking from nowhere else except your heart, you’ll never know if you don’t try! Listen and see the voice I carry with me: ‘Speak with your heart! Speak with your heart!’” In my humble Solarpunk opinion, this feels pretty solarpunk. One of the main things about being Solarpunk--at least, in my experience--is unabashed enthusiasm about our ideas and the colorful sustainable future we’re envisioning! Encouragement from others is what brought me to this space and what draws others to join and stay in Solarpunk spaces! From our art to our writings to our technological concepts and even our arguments all come from sincerity and passion about what we’re doing and the future we want! 

And keep in mind, these are the opening and ending themes of the game! These are the songs where the writers are trying to bottle up the essential vibes of the game into a few minutes of funky tunes! You open up the game for the first time, you hear Reach for the Stars! And after a wonderful story and the satisfaction of finishing a game, you hear Speak With Your Heart! Even the titles alone wouldn’t feel out of place in a discussion about Solarpunk ideals!

Final Words

The Sonic franchise has its flaws, but it sure does speak on hope and resistance. Is Sonic Solarpunk? Maybe not entirely, but I feel it’s got some core elements that are Solarpunk-aligned, even when it’s not always front and center like it is here. I’m not going to pretend that Sonic the hedgehog as a franchise is the pinnacle of a Solarpunk story/game--but it’s got some nice elements that could inspire other stories, and uses those elements in a way that makes people feel like they can and should take action against darker industrializing forces in their life.

Or at least it did for me, as a fifth grader. Maybe that’s not a lot. But if it can help open the eyes of a handful of kids and teens and make them feel hope? Make them feel like they could maybe find the courage to do something? Maybe that’s all we need from it.

[thatbirdguyy]

Tails' Lullaby

An older animatic I made a few months ago about Sonic and Tails!

And four of my favourite frames!

[yesioarts]

Tangle deals with this. Every. Single. Night.

[yellowvixen]

weeks 48 + 49: the thing ever

[silverthehedgehogcharacteristics]

Silver the Hedgehog Key Characteristics

Strong Sense of Justice: Silver is a righteous hedgehog of justice that is outraged by suffering and devastation. Seeks to settle scores(Sonic Forces, IDW Sonic) to get back for those that have been wronged and make evildoers pay for what they’ve done. Is very confrontational because of this as he has zero tolerance for injustices or things like breaking promises and will quickly take on anyone or anything to right wrongs and help those in need, however “His wish is to maintain peace, not to eradicate evil”(Sonic Channel). Silver wants to become a hero because it means being someone that can “protect smiles”(Sonic & Silver).

Optimism: Silver is an optimist and embodies hope just as Sonic embodies freedom. He always looks to a brighter outcome, does not give into despair no matter how dire the situation and believes “There’s always hope as long as you don’t give it up”(JP Sonic Forces quote). Inspires hope in others during dark times(Sonic 06 last episode, Sonic Forces, helping Elise through her performance anxiety in Otherworld Comedy) and spreads happiness during peaceful times as he is said to engage in Cheerful Activities after the historical change in 06(Sonic & Silver). If he is down it does not take much to bring him back up(Sonic Rivals 2). Silver has a positive way of life that inspires people and makes them want to cheer him on(Sonic Channel).

Kindness: Silver is an Altruist with a strong desire to help others and is always thinking of someone else’s happiness rather than his own(Sonic & Silver). Silver wants to “protect smiles” and make people happy because he grew up in a world filled with despair. His altruism is the source of his mission and the only thing that can make him break from it as he can’t say no to a sad face or ignore those in need. Silver actively does things like serving apple slices(Wallpaper Comedy 2022) and giving gifts as Santa(Sonic Pict) because his greatest joy is seeing smiles. Silver put the spirit of the pilot Renzo to rest by pretending to be an airplane for him in Town Mission 4. Silver is selfless and acts for others, he has no regard for his own safety and is willing to sacrifice himself without even thinking(Sonic Comic Pumpkin Trigger). When Eggman attacks in Sonic Comic Act Final Stage, Silver instantly acts to shield everyone.

Honest: Silver is a pure and genuine person that is very Forthright, Straightforward and Honest to a fault to the point of being blunt. He can’t tell a lie, wears his heart on his sleeve and has an “Honest, unpretentious and kind demeanor”(Sonic Channel Staff Column). Silver is very humble and does not think of himself as a hero(Sonic & Silver). Silver is an Enhancer(someone that is determined and simple, never lies, hides nothing, is straightforward in their actions and thinking, whose words and actions are often dominated by their feelings and is very focused on their goals),

Brash: Silver has a brash and flippant personality that is even more brash than Sonic’s(even Sonic says Silver has an attitude in Sonic Rivals). Silver is so straightforward and honest that he is also rude and blunt. He has no filter and will call you an idiot to your face if he thinks you’re an idiot and is so direct that he can often ignore manners and social customs(06 NPC dialogue, Sonic Rivals series). Silver is very snappy, abrasive and sarcastic, being quick to insult or sneer at any opposition(06, Rivals series, Riders Zero Gravity, Olympic Games, Eggman’s theme park in Colors DS). Has a confident, somewhat smug attitude about his abilities and is very Competitive(almost fights Blaze when they start one-upping each other over who could deal with Orbot and Cubot on their own in Colors DS). Silver is said to have Mischievous Side(Sonic Channel Commemorative Illustration series). Silver is Headstrong(almost fights Blaze when she treats him like an amateur in Otherworld Comedy) and can be quick to start fights for both serious and petty reasons(Colors DS, Rivals series, Jet and Bowser Jr in Mario and Sonic, Infinite in Forces). Silver is very ill-mannered in general which is more apparent in Japanese where he has various informal rude mannerisms including using “Ore”(informal masculine “I”), “Anta”(Impolite “you”) that signifies he speaks bluntly, pointing directly at people he speaks to(confrontational gesture) and crossing his legs while sitting(roughly the Japanese equivalent to putting your feet on a table). Silver is rash and impolite in contrast to Future Trunks. Silver’s blunt rudeness, honesty and overall traits are the complete opposite of Eggman Nega’s over-politeness, deception and overall traits. Despite this however Silver is still outgoing and approachable.

Naive: Silver has a black and white perspective and is innocent in his ideals. Expects people to believe him when he says he’s from the future or explains outlandish situations simply because he knows them to be true(Which causes people to not believe him). Sometimes takes things literally and doesn’t understand jokes but has an angry “What’s so funny” attitude when he doesn’t understand things(Says “Yes, why?” when Espio asks “you want me to believe that?” in Sonic Rivals 2 and “What’s so funny” when he didn’t understand people what people were laughing at in Otherworld Comedy). Silver is young and immature according to Shun Nakamura.

Emotional: Emotionally immature, unregulated and unfiltered. Sometimes Silver tends to deal with things too head-on because of the strength of his feelings, or he tends to take everything on himself, which can make him reckless and rash/impulsive(In the Japanese version of 06 Blaze describes him as running wild rather than insecure). Short-tempered, easily angered and has a wrathful temper like Blaze. Gets indignant when people don’t listen to him(Sonic Channel) and punches things when he is frustrated(06, Mario & Sonic series). Feels joy and rage loudly but sadness and contemplation quietly. Silver is generally High-Spirited, puts his all into what he gets invested in(I’m giving this everything I’ve got!). Can get carried away or needs to be calmed down/held back when he gets riled up. Silver is hot-blooded and rash while Sonic and Shadow are calm and cool(Sonic & Silver Sonic Channel story).

Peace: Silver lives and fights for World Peace. Silver is devoted to peace because he hails from a hellish ruined future that was filled with darkness, devastation and suffering. Silver has great empathy for the state of both people and environments so devastation saddens and upsets him while beauty and prosperity leaves him breathless. Blue Skies and Smiles are especially important to him, blue skies make him feel at peace, and he can’t help but smile when seeing smiling faces. The quills on Silver’s head are patterned in the shape of a Japanese Red Maple Leaf which represents peace and prosperity.

Sentimental: Silver is also very Sentimental. He finds great beauty in nature and serenely appreciates both the wonders of the world and the little things that most people take for granted. Silver enjoys sightseeing and going on journeys(Sonic Colors DS, Olympic Games, Sonic Pict) because of this. Silver relaxes and chats with his friends during downtime(Sonic & Silver). Silver has a somewhat wide-eyed curiosity and likes seeing cool and interesting things(“Interesting”). Silver feels serene and at peace when seeing nature, happiness and prosperity. This side of him ties into his peace themes due to his ability to appreciate beauty and serenity which the Momiji/Japanese Red Maple also represents.

Fighter: Fought and struggled for half his lifetime(possibly since he was Cream’s age) through the disaster future(Sonic & Silver). Silver hails from an extremely hostile environment filled with darkness, large Iblis enemies and constant disasters. He has high aggression because of this and has very intense determined expressions and aggressive body language with constant fists even during competitions or just tasks he's focused on. Silver has angular sharp pointed eyes like Sonic’s other rivals which represent intensity and danger in character design. Shadow describes Silver as a Fighter in Team Sonic Racing. Silver is extremely powerful being able to evenly physically fight Sonic and Shadow to a standstill in 06 and the Rivals series, and repeatedly destroy both the gigantic Iblis and small armies by himself in 06 and Sonic Pict. Silver both Enjoys Fighting and has an Instant fight response when surprised in Sonic Generations. Silver “sometimes calls forth great power without mercy”(Sonic Channel).

Determination: Silver has relentless Determination that allowed him to fight through the apocalyptic future. Doesn’t give up easily(got exact hedgehog apple slices after 40 tries). Has no regard for pain/massive pain tolerance(Kept fighting undeterred after being kicked in the head by Shadow and skipped across the street like a rock by Sonic in Generations and endures excruciating "pain beyond description” caused by his powers in Sonic & Silver). Silver is bold and undeterred by any threat(says “We can take them all on!” when facing Eggman, Knuckles and Rouge in Rivals 2 and “I’ll just destroy him everywhere at once” when facing Solaris in Sonic 06) as he fought against disasters and large Iblis monsters in dark dangerous environments from a very young age and throws himself at every enemy from Iblis to Infinite without hesitation, even if they are stronger than him.

Straight-to-the-point mentality, hates distractions and petty details(Doesn’t care what the plan is called, only that it works in Forces). This can make him impatient towards things that get in his way or waste time. Silver is Goal Focused(even during things like competitions he says the Jade Ghost Wisp is the only item he likes because it lets him disappear and focus on racing in the Team Vector interview). Takes things much more seriously than Sonic and sometimes gets mad at Sonic for not taking things seriously or messing around(JP TSR, Sonic 4 Panel Manga). 

Silver is very direct and Proactive as he spent most of his life trying to defeat Iblis and find out how his future came to ruin when no one could tell him how and actively investigated Dodon Pa and Eggman in Team Sonic Racing.

Silver is pragmatic and somewhat ruthless. Opens both his fights with Sonic in 06 by trying to sneak attack and snipe Sonic with psychic energy balls. Has fought dirty by playing possum to hit Sonic in 06, snuck past Soleanna guards to get to Radical Train in 06. Mugs Tails in Sonic Rivals 2(he’s okay with stealing), has no qualms with fighting kids like Tails or Bowser Jr. Leaves his enemies to die even if they beg for life(Sonic Rivals 2/IDW Sonic). Has the “get-it-done” mindset of Future Trunks and will do whatever it takes to save the future.

Challenger: Enjoys challenges and ways to test himself(Sonic Colors DS, Mario & Sonic Series). Makes steady efforts to train and improve offscreen(Sonic Channel Comedy). Silver is a very skilled person that takes offense to being treated like an amateur(Otherworld Comedy) and is able to do various jobs around Soleanna(06 Town Missions), become a delivery boy(Sonic Pict), a butler, a top class ice skater, and a genius skating coach(Sonic Channel) and has sharp shooting among the best in Soleanna’s 1500 year history. One of his catchphrases is “I’ll take you on”. 

Intuitive: Silver sometimes deduces things that other people do not and every central game role Silver has from 06 to TSR is about him searching for truth and he has successfully figured out the schemes of Eggman and Eggman Nega before anyone else each time. Silver can be very sharp, perceptive and crafty; he figures out Eggman Nega’s disguises by noticing small details in his mannerisms in Sonic Rivals, intuits Blaze trying to control her great power when seeing it for the first time in Sonic Channel and changes his fight with Sonic into a race to collect Chao instead to advance his mission in Sonic Rivals 2.

Often shown/implied to like Apples(he ate apple flavored calorie bar rations in the 06 Iblis future according to Sonic Channel Sonic Pict) suggesting they are his favorite food. Apples also symbolize sweetness, beauty, and hope for prosperity in Japanese and Jewish culture.

Lives in the good future the same way Blaze lives in the Sol Dimension when not in Sonic’s time(spends most of his time there as he doesn’t get to see Sonic very often according to Team Sonic Racing). Also implied to live in Soleanna(He was originally going to be named Venice simply because he lived there, implied to live there in Sonic & Silver and Otherworld Comedy Act 4 Sonic Channel stories).

[princess-4011]

Tails looks so adorable in that pose he does in the Shadow game 🤭😻

[star-stages]

Every line Eggman has in Colors is gold lol

[silverthehedgehogexplained]

Explaining Silver the Hedgehog's character (Updated)

To truly understand Silver's character you need to understand not one, not two, not three, not even four but the ten different cores of his character. Starting with...

A Strong Sense of Justice - The Hedgehog of Justice

Silver is driven by a strong Sense of Justice. This is his defining trait mentioned in almost all character bios. Silver is a righteous person driven to right wrongs in the world and will always stand up for others. This can make him quite Confrontational as he has zero tolerance for injustice or wrongful suffering and will take on anyone on the spot to fight for what he thinks is right. Silver will always settle the score. Silver however doesn't wish to punish evil but rather to simply maintain peace.

Silver's sense of justice is more important to him than nearly any other character as it is the source of his drive and mission to make things right in the world. Unlike other guardian characters, Silver's sense of duty to protect the future is driven entirely by his personal sense of justice rather than imposed responsibility like Blaze, Knuckles and Ariem..

A Determind Optimist

Silver's other most defining trait is his noted Optimism. Silver has a positive outlook no matter the circumstances. During peaceful times Silver spreads positivity and seeks to make people smile however he can and during dark times Silver rallies and inspires hope in others. If Sonic represents Freedom then Silver represents Hope and will never give up no matter how dire or impossible the situation may seem.

Silver's very presence radiates positivity. In Sonic Channel stories Silver is said to engage in Cheerful Activities after the historical change in 06 and have both a "positive way of life that inspires people and makes them want to watch over him and cheer him on forever…" and an "Honest, unpretentious and kind demeanor" that makes him a warm and inspiring influence. This even extends to real life as this illustration by Tomoko Hayane spontaneously inspired everyone in her office to high five Silver on the screen the day it was made. In Sonic Channel stories Silver also has a very warm smile that fills Princess Elise with trust and joy during the height of her anxiety in one story and a recipient can't say no to in another story. (He's low-key a pretty boy)

Linked to Silver's optimism is supreme Determination. Silver will not give up no matter how impossible the odds are or how badly he's hurt, even when Solaris destroyed the entire space-time continuum and was explained to be nigh-invincible Silver simply resolved to destroy him in the past, present and future all at once and roused everyone back into action when they had all completely lost hope. Silver again rouses hope into the Resistance in Sonic Forces when Sonic and Tails were thought to be lost. Silver doesn't give up easily in general as it took 40 tries for him to cut exact Silver cut apple slices. It is this spirit that allows Silver to fight through the hopeless apocalyptic future. Silver's hope, optimism and determination are best exemplified in the Japanese version of Sonic Forces where he says this:

There is hope! As long you don't give up!

A Kind Hearted Hedgehog

Silver is an Altruist. An altruist is a person who is unselfish and concerned for the well-being of others, even if they don't gain anything by doing so. Silver not only has a strong desire to help others but he also has great Empathy for both people and environments and wants to see them in a happy state. Silver loves Smiles, he can't help but smile when he sees other people smile and his greatest joy is making other people happy. Silver wants to make people happy because he grew up in an apocalyptic future that was filled with despair as stated in Sonic & Silver on Sonic Channel. Silver's altruism is not only the motivation behind his mission to protect the future but also the only thing that can make him break from it as he will drop his current mission to help people as he does with Amy in Sonic 06 and the understaffed post office of Soleanna in Sonic Pict as Silver cannot say no to a sad face. Silver's reason for aspiring to become a hero is to be someone that can protect smiles as he states in Sonic & Silver.

Focused On Saving The Future - A Focused Agent

The very first thing Silver is described with in 06 design documents is Focused on Saving The Future. Silver is a driven and focused agent that becomes very determined and serious when it comes to saving the future and dealing with potential threats. Like Sonic's other rivals Silver is very skilled in many regards from skillfully doing various odds jobs in Soleanna in Town Missions to getting one of the highest sharpshooting scores in Soleanna's 1500 year history(Town Mission 6) to becoming a "genius" skating coach celebrity in the Otherworld Comedy series to the general use of his powers(Silver takes offence to being treated like an amateur for a reason). Silver is a veteran fighter from his apocalyptic life of battling Iblis and is able to and quickly learn things he's never done before like Chaos Control and car racing after only seeing them once. Silver trains regularly and is said to make steady efforts to improve in the 2022 wallpaper comedy series. Silver is a Fly/Technique type character so he specialize in technical sports like ice skating, uses a high balance car in Team Sonic Racing and is possibly the fastest flyer in the series as he's able to keep up with Sonic in Generations and is able to fly at light speeds with his Teleport Dash ability. Silver is very Proactive in his pursuits as in the opening of his story in Sonic 06 he states that he always asked people in his apocalyptic future how the world was destroyed but could never get a direct answer, hence why he listens to Mephiles.

Silver is noted to be intuitive and perceptive. He sees through Eggman Nega's disguises by noticing small details in his mannerisms. In Sonic Rivals 2 he turns his fight with Sonic into a race to collect Chao and advance his mission instead. In Otherworld Comedy Act 8 he intuits Blaze trying to control her powers when seeing them for the first time. Silver solves problems through thinking in all of his major game appearances from figuring out how to revive Sonic in the last episode of 06 to uncovering Eggman's plot in Team Sonic Racing.

Despite his naivete, Silver Isn't Very Trusting. His respect and trust has to be earned as he doesn't work with anyone in the Sonic Rivals series until they prove useful to him. In Sonic Generations Silver doesn't trust Sonic as being real and he is almost immediately suspicious of Dodon Pa. While he can take things literally at times the same deception that works on Knuckles won't work on Silver as Eggman learned in Team Sonic Racing. Even when working with Mephiles, Silver did not initially believe in time travel and did not fully commit to his plan until he was physically thrown back in time and still began questioning it after being confronted by Amy, only continuing to go along with the mission after it was reaffirmed by both Blaze and Mephiles as the only option to save the future.

Silver is very Goal Focused and has a Straight To The Point Mentality as part of his forthrightness. He doesn't like distractions, petty details or things getting in his way and prefers to concentrate on his current goals. Silver can also be somewhat Ruthless as he has done many things to protect the future including sneaking past Soleanna guards(Town Mission 11), mugging Tails and attempted assassinations all with little reservation. Despite having something of an honor code against cowardice Silver is also willing to fight pretty dirty such as when he played possum to hit Sonic in 06.

Forthright Purity

One of Silver's original design document descriptors is that he is very Forthright. This actually entails multiple different things about Silver that all deal with his Purity. As his name suggests, Silver is themed with purity as a character with his silvery white colors, youthfulness, innocence and forthright nature. Silver is forthright in every sense of the word including being Straightforward and Honest. Honest to a fault as Silver is so honest that he can't even lie(though he can change the subject as he does in Sonic 06 and Sonic Rivals 2). Direct and Outspoken as Silver hides almost nothing about himself(he only tries to hide his problems as when he tries to dismiss his worries in TSR as nothing) and speaks his mind as well as Going Straight to the Point as discussed above. This is why in Playstation Magazine Japan, Silver was officially given the birthday May 9th and with it the star sign of Taurus which is associated with determination, directness and honesty. Silver wears his heart on his sleeve and has a certain innocence to him that permeates his character.

With this purity however comes Silver's Naivety. He has a somewhat simplistic Black and White Perspective. Silver can sometimes take things literally and expects people to believe any outlandish things he tells them simply because he knows them to be true. Silver can also be unfamiliar with things in the present due to living in the far future where everything is either long destroyed or far more advanced.

The flip side of that forthright purity however is...

The Brash Antithesis of Eggman Nega

On the flip side of being straightforward and honest, Silver is also Blunt and Rude. Just as Silver wears his heart on sleeve he also has no filter and will say whatever is on his mind which can make him Abrasive and quick to insult. Silver will call you an idiot to your face if he thinks you are one and often trash talks opponents in in-game dialogue(literally calling defeated enemies trash in 06). Silver's rudeness is even more apparent in Japanese where he uses many informal impressions including addressing himself with "Ore"(おれ) and others "Anta"(あんた, the ruder version "Anata") which signifies that he speaks bluntly. Silver often points directly at people he speaks to(This is considered much more rude in Japan) and crosses his legs while sitting in a way that is roughly the Japanese equivalent of putting your feet on a table. Silver acts very casually with others without introducing himself which can be very informal and rude as Knuckles calls out during their meeting in Sonic Rivals 1. This can make Silver even more rude than other brash characters in a technical sense as he's just blunt and acts without a filter. This is a key difference between Silver and Future Trunks who was largely a shy and polite mannered individual.

Similar to Jet the Hawk, Silver is Juvenile both in his age designation and general level of maturity. Due to this Silver can be quite Brash similar to Sonic but even more so due to his aggression and bluntness/lack of filter. He can be snotty, sneering, sarcastic and is even stated to have a mischievous side in the Commemorative Illustration series. Though he is generally humble Silver has a confident, somewhat smug attitude about his powers and is very Competitive. Almost fighting Blaze as they begin one upping each other over who could deal with Orbot & Cubot on their own when they first meet in the Triumph cutscene Sonic Colors DS. Silver is also Headstrong, almost fighting Blaze again when she treats him like an amateur in the Otherworld Comedy series. Despite his share of hedgehog prickliness however Silver isn't a hostile or mean spirited person(as long as you're not in his way or being unjust that is). Just as Eggman Nega being polite does not make him a good person being rude does not make Silver a bad one as he maintains his goal of helping others at all times. When not focused on a mission Silver is shown to be a fun loving, reliable and protective friend. Silver cherishes his friends and is willing to do anything for them. Silver can also be just as quick to praise or call something cool as he is to insult someone and he strongly believes in the abilities of the people that have earned his respect as when he recruits Sonic to help him with the Revival Bridge situation in Sonic & Silver and is genuinely grateful for Espio's help in saving the world in Sonic Rivals 2. This side of Silver can be very similar to Sonic from Sonic SatAM. Combined with his naivety and determination this side can also make him similar to a Looney Tunes character called Henery Hawk. (He's naive but he has a blunt "What's so funny?" attitude about it)

Due to this nature, Silver has bold explosive responses to even the most impossible challenges, stating "I'll show you how crazy I am" when Knuckles calls him crazy in Sonic Rivals 2, "Come on, Espio! We can take them all on!" when confronted with Knuckles, Rouge and Eggman all at once in Sonic Rivals 2, and "If you say it exists in the past, present and future, I'll destroy them all at once!" when facing the impossible challenge of Solaris(He drops pretty hard lines when things get tough). Silver has this attitude against even things that outmatch him such as Infinite's mighty power.

Silver is described as "young and immature" by his creator Shun Nakamura so despite his general seriousness he can still have somewhat childish moments.

Almost all of Silver's traits are also diametrically opposed to those of his Sonic Rivals series nemesis Eggman Nega(currently the only other character from Silver's future), down to the colors they're themed after Black and White.

Silver is Rude and Blunt out of sheer earnestness while Eggman Nega is overly Polite as a form of mind games. Silver is Warm and Pure while Eggman Nega is Cold and Twisted. Silver is Honest to a fault while Eggman Nega is extremely Deceitful. Silver is Kind while Eggman Nega is Cruel. Silver is Naive while Eggman Nega is Sophisticated. Silver is Reckless while Eggman Nega is Calculating. Silver is Practical while Eggman Nega is Petty. Silver desires Peace and Prosperity while Eggman Nega desires Chaos and Destruction. Both are willing to sacrifice themselves for those ends in ways that seem crazy to other characters.

Riled Up - A Passionate Emotional Beast

One of the descriptions for Silver in design documents, Riled Up, alludes to Silver's highly emotional nature. Silver is a High Spirited person that is also emotionally immature.

Like Blaze, Silver can be Easily Angered and have a pretty Wrathful Temper. However unlike Blaze who is repressed in her feelings, Silver has no filter and can get loud or carried away when he is overly angered, excited or saddened(He's autistic...) which can primarily be seen in his animations and dialogue in the Olympic Games series. Silver puts his all into any activity he gets invested into(I'm giving this all I've got!) because of how Passionate he is.

It is the strength of his feelings that can make Silver Impulsive or Rash as often noted in his character bios.

Sometimes Silver tends to deal with things too head-on because of the strength of his feelings, or he tends to take everything on himself, but this is an aspect of his purity and an endearing virtue. ~ Sonic & Silver Sonic Channel story

This separates Silver from Sonic and Shadow who are both calm and cool in most situations while Silver has very little emotional regulation and can be blinded by his feelings. This can make him rather Reckless at times as he can deal with things too head on and will throw himself at problems when he gets overtaken by his feelings.

While Shadow is calculating and detached, Silver is controlled by powerful emotion and is impulsive and obsessive. This causes them both to be incredibly straightforward, mission oriented, and viscous, but for entirely opposite reasons. Sonic on the other hand falls in between. He cares, but he's not nearly as impulsive and manic as Silver. He's also cool-headed and easygoing, but not out of the detached stoicism of Shadow. SSS are quite different emotionally.

This Hot-blooded emotional nature is why Silver often has very Stoic partners like Blaze, Espio or Shadow to calm him down and pull him back. This dynamic is alluded to in the Japanese version of Sonic 06 where Blaze states that she shouldn't let Silver run wild on his own(in the English version she states that he's insecure when alone though that is contradicted within both 06 itself and the Rivals series).

An Aggressive Warrior

Due to his apocalyptic background Silver is a fierce and aggressive Warrior with many violent aspects to him. The Sonic Channel Sonic & Silver character introduction story states that Silver fought and struggled for half his lifetime which implies that he fought the forces of Iblis since he was seven years old.

Silver was born into a literal Hell on Earth where people lived without hope and he had to constantly battle against the minions of Iblis and put out disasters caused by it's existence such as flame tornadoes, storms and tides of lava destroying everything in a world where everyone lived in Eternal Darkness and suffering. Silver fought for most of his life to bring peace to the world. Due to this life of constant violence and devastation Silver is devoted to and deeply appreciates Peace but also has a violent personality because of it. This is why Silver has intense determined expressions and aggressive body language as he constantly makes fists and aggressive stances even when he's happy. Silver also punches things when he's frustrated and gets up using his fists in Sonic Forces. This not only shows his determination and emotional nature but his baked in aggression from a life of fighting through the apocalypse. Shadow notes Silver as a fighter in Team Sonic Racing dialogue. As covered above Silver can be something of an attack dog and needs to be held back at times.

This is also reflected in the pointed design of his eyes which in Japanese character design represents sharpness and intensity in a character. These points are easy to miss due to how his eyes are modeled and the way they align with the quills that act as bangs over the upper corners of his eyes.

Silver is incredibly powerful, being able to defeat armies of enemies in Town Missions in Sonic 06 and shown to have a tally of the number of times he single-handedly defeated the gigantic Iblis in a Sonic Pict wallpaper. When they fight in 06 Silver is as physically strong as Shadow who himself can easily lift 18-Wheeler G.U.N. Trucks and other house sized objects with one arm.

Silver also Enjoys Fighting and fights for fun as seen in his friendly Rival Battles in Sonic Generations. Silver is willing to fight anybody if he feels slighted and I do mean anybody as he's been shown willing to fight everything from skyscraper sized monsters like Iblis and Ifrit to small children as he has no qualms with fighting Tails or Bowser Jr(something he shares with Shadow). Silver is said to “sometimes call forth great power without mercy” in Sonic & Silver on Sonic Channel.

Tying into his selfless and reckless nature, Silver is also Extremely Brave. As stated for the Pumpkin Trigger Sonic Comic, Silver has no regard for his own safety and will immediately throw himself at any danger or sacrifice himself at a moments notice especially if it means protecting those around him. Silver had to fight the colossal Iblis and its endless spawn in a dark hellscape by himself for most of his life(as it has been revealed Blaze wasn't born in the future in 06). Silver also has very high pain tolerance owing to his determination and violent life of fighting Iblis. Angrily continuing to attack after being kicked in the head by Shadow in 06, shredded and bounced across the street by Sonic in Generations and enduring agonizing pain beyond description caused by overusing his powers in Sonic & Silver. Silver also seems to value being brave and dislikes cowardice going by his remarks in the Sonic Rivals series and the Team Vector Nintendo Dream interview which has interesting implications for his backstory.

When surprised in Sonic Generations Silver instantly has a fight response as he grew up in a world where Iblis minions could attack at any moment. (He's feral)

A Sentimental Person

Silver also has a very quiet side. He can be Introspective and Sentimental. This is shown throughout Sonic 06 with the non-verbal processing of events around him. After his fallout with Amy, he sits quietly by himself unengaged with his mission to destroy the Iblis Trigger and contemplates the morality of hurting one person to save the world. He silently takes in the events of the Solaris Project as he finally learns the truth about the destruction of the world he always asked about. Silver feels grief and contemplation quietly as shown when he's left solemn and silent over his moral dilemma and Blaze's sacrifice. Silver appreciates little things and finds beauty in simple parts of the world that most people take for granted.

Silver also has a certain curiosity to him and sometimes takes interest in new things ("Interesting"), so he also enjoys new experiences, facing challenges and going sightseeing.

The Hedgehog of Peace

The absolute core and purpose of Silver's character is World Peace. Silver lives for and fights to protect world peace at all costs. This primarily includes his drive to protect Smiles and Blue Skies. Because of Silver's Empathy he wants to see the world and it's people prosper and could not stand the devastated of his destroyed future even before he experienced any true peace. Silver's quills are patterned after a Japanese Maple Leaf which represents peace.

In contrast to the apocalyptic devastation, darkness and suffering he grew up with, Silver feels at peace when seeing clear blue skies, beautiful environments or people living in prosperity. Due to hailing from a devastated future even something as simple as a desert is beautiful to him because it's intact and the people are happy. Because his feelings reflect the world around him, seeing these things in ruined states saddens and upsets him while seeing them thrive takes his breath away. When Silver sees people smile he can't help but smile. Silver's mission is to protect and maintain a happy future with a blue sky.

This is also reflected in Silver's heavily implied favorite food, apples as apples represent Good Fortune and Prosperity. It was even revealed in Sonic Pict and a how-it-was-made special that Silver ate apple flavored calorie bars in his destroyed future.

To recap. The ten core aspects of Silver are:

A Strong Sense of Justice

The Optimistic Determinator

A Kind Heart

Forthright Purity( with Naivete)

A Focused Agent

An Emotional Beast

The Brash Antithesis of Eggman Nega

The Aggressive Warrior

A Sentimental Person

The Hedgehog of Peace

This post complies information about Silver from all his canon appearances, manuals, the Mario & Sonic series, Nintendo Dream and PlayStation Magazine interviews, design documents and cultural research by myself and others. Particularly the Sonic Channel Story called Sonic & Silver that is meant to introduce Silver's character and the Team Vector Interview from Nintendo Dream Magazine.

Some believe that Silver is an experimental character that changes from from game to game but all ten of these core aspects have been with Silver since his very inception in Sonic 06 and have been indicated in character bios/design docs since the beginning and are simply shown to different extents throughout the series. Silver is a very complex and abstruse character that can be difficult to grasp due to his lack of focus and the obscurity of most things he appears in post 06. I hope this post has given you a deeper understanding of him.

[silverthehedgehoganalysis]

Silver’s desire for peace (as symbolized by maple leaf 🍁 shape to his quills) seems to be fueled by empathy he has for the world and people in it. Silver’s feelings reflect the environment and those around him as it has been noted that:

The blue sky makes Silver feel at peace

He can’t help but smile when he sees smiling faces and wants to become a hero because it means being someone that can protect smiles

Silver denotes his good futures as happy ones or ones where people have a smile

Silver will drop his mission to help those in need, he simply can’t say no to a sad face as he helps Amy and takes a job as a delivery boy because of this

Natural beauty, flourishing environments or just places where people are prospering and living peacefully take his breath away 

Desolate or destroyed environments sadden and upset him 

He cannot stand the suffering of the people in his bad futures

[sonichedgeblog]

'Sonic Colors' was released on the Nintendo Wii 14 years ago today in the US. Support us on Patreon

[rainstarri]

super sonic the silly :3

rlly proud of this tbh!!

[candyypirate]

🦊🟡: heheh, laser and sonic are similar in some way!

🫢🫢⁉️

[essycogany]

Sonic’s been more acceptable to hugs in canon. Specifically with Tangled and Amy. He also has small examples with the Wisps as well. It makes me think after Sonic Forces where Sonic’s had no contact with ANYONE for 6 months, he’s grown to like hugs A LOT more.

Before Sonic Forces:

After Sonic Forces:

Before Forces Sonic politely pushes the Wisps away from him for some personal space. While after Forces he greets them with open arms. This gives off the impression after disasters like the metal virus or Frontiers where Sonic couldn’t even high-five his friends, the blue hedgehog grew to be more physically affectionate towards his friends. I guess Sonic decided it was something he wanted to appreciate while he’s able to.

Makes you really wonder how those obstacles might’ve permanently affected him. To be fair those situations including the one with Surge, did a total number on the guy in some fashion. We were told about it more then shown in Forces but it still counts.

Or maybe I’m looking WAY too much into things. It’s your call!

[yesioarts]

HAPPY NEW YEARS !!! I may be late to that. But still !!!!! I love the progress I’ve made regarding the Sonic posts. Here is my first ever Whisper and Tangle doodle compared to my illustration of them !!!! I believe I’ve improved for sure from when I started, but the grind doesn’t start stop there !!!!!!

[taffydragondraws]

Color'd

Bonus: Laser Cyber King WereSpine 2