#sonic fandom analysis

[bitter-sweet-coffee]

ngl when i came back to tumblr i was forcibly pressured into adopting certain headcanons and relationship dynamics and ships from the sonic fandom. and i hold this grudge VERY strongly. because (un)thankfully, i’m a longtime fan and can at least be free to my own interpretations having been here long enough. like, i can VOUCH for something being popular at another time because i saw it myself. i’ve played all the games at some point or other, i read archie and fleetway albeit it’s been a while, and i have a good grasp on lore.

but what about new fans? what about the people who DONT get to choose. who DONT know that their headcanons are valid and fun and work with other canons. when you have popular fanon dictating what is acceptable and what isn’t, you have new fans who feel scared to say things like “oh i always interpreted silver and blaze to be a romantic pairing” or “i take shadow’s physical age literally and headcanon him as 50” because a) it isn’t what everyone else says and b) there are people who will attack them for this.

and look, i get that this isn’t the biggest issue in the world, it’s just fandom stuff. but god, it bothers me how 2022 was the sonic renaissance and we have all these new fans joining, an entire generation, and before they even think about or manage to experience the games and comics themselves, they’re being told to not read archie because penders is bad, and that amy has comphet, and shadow’s game sucks. stuff like that. and to just embrace the fanmade content that’s there and popular, because it’s cute and wholesome and the angst isn’t problematique.

idk, it feels wrong. it bothers me a lot. i love when people get to make their own little worlds with new headcanons and variety, because even if i don’t agree, i like that freewill and expressionism and personal touch. sometimes i feel like we don’t get that anymore. i know it wasn’t a perfect place in the fandom’s past, it was actually just as aggressive at times, but i expect more from the future fanbase when it comes to free expression and the coexistence of different fanon interpretations. but i guess i expect too much lol

note: i’m not proship. i have shipping boundaries and this isn’t a dogwhistle for people to make gross shit like the stuff you see when you google cream and vector without safesearch on. THAT is fucked up. i’m talking about having literally any opinion that isn’t squeaky clean aka espio is… a morally grey person who is arrogant, hotheaded, violent, and wishes death on people… because that’s canon and i like it and stuff like that. not everything is cute y’know?

[artist-issues]

I think ya’ll crave adoration so much that you see it in every character’s every interaction, so that you can vicariously experience “I’m obsessed with someone and they’re a little obsessed with me” in every fictional moment.

enemies or friends

acquaintances or family

positive or negative

major or minor

platonic or sexual

direct interaction or imagined

EVERYTHING is romantic love to you because you’re starved for “I need to adore and be adored”

[fortemelody]

AHHHSHFBTKFNTLFKGNFMDM SONIC 3 TRAILER SONIC 3 TRAILER SONIC 3 TRAILER IM LOOSING MY SHIT RN

here’s some things i noticed/wondered/loved:

- i think in that scene where tom is on the ground yelling for sonic, he is wearing a special forces suit. maybe he upgraded from cop to working with gun?? if so i think that’s a really good use of his character actually! he wanted to save a life and raise a family above all else yes, but he still got his previous dream of doing more serious cop work!

- shadow just. has a big ass portal?? like holy shit he’s just suckin the life outta earth and ig that’s one way to do it (or maybe it’s just a ring and i’m stupid idek)

- i’m sure we’ll learn more about this in the actual movie so i’m not too worried, but i’m super confused at the very beginning scene. apparently sonic didn’t change his heart…but he did tho? like he learned what being a true hero meant in the last movie. tbh i feel like that’s enough but hey i’m not against more character development for our boy so!! (also that bit where he’s like “in my lungs” was actually really funny to me, ben schwartz��� awesome delivery caught me off guard)

- GERALD ROBOTNIK ALIVE HUUUUH?! tbh i would’ve preferred if maria was alive, i feel like that would be an interesting dynamic. but also ig that would make it harder for shadow to learn anything so i totally get it. anyways i’m just glad they’re putting a little twist on the story, it keeps it interesting. they already sorta did that with the knuckles and iblis thing actually! (even if that show sucked ass and although that probably wasn’t intentional 😭)

- even tho bro only got like… 3 lines, i really think keanu fits shadow. he’s very soft spoken in comparison to the rest of the case which feels nice. also he’s like the “really bad” guy so ofc he’s not gonna be yappin on and on like sonic or robotnik and he’s gonna take things uber seriously.

- where was my girl maddie :( i think she was only in like a singular frame. hope shes in the movie a somewhat significant amount. i heart pretzel lady!! could live without wade tho like pls im so sick of his bowling soap opera 💀

- FAT ROBOTNIK FAT ROBOTNIK FAT ROBOTNIK!!! after fucking 3 movies they finally fulfilled jim carrey’s wishes!! let the man get creative like please i love jim carrey sm aughdfhfnfmschxj. also love how we got so much stobonik content within that short scene like jesus come get y’all’s food

- shadow at one point says something along the lines of “when we’re done, there won’t be anything left.” maybe i’m reading WAY to into this but what does the “we’re” part mean?? is he working with others? i feel like this is either gonna be team dark or some new movie exclusive character(s). edit: someone made a valid point that he’s actually probably referring to gerald (look at reblogs!)

-CHAO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! lowkey wonder if the room therye in is like an amusement park or somethin like that

- no sign of amy :( but honestly my prediction now is that she’s gonna be the post credit scene teaser cus they always do a new character reveal there. first tails, then shadow. and honestly now i think it might be better that way so shadow can have a chance to breathe and show his story in full. i’m pretty sure i vaguely remember colleen (tails’ VA) being kinda mysterious about amy’s appearance when asked, and also the fact that it was confirmed that this isn’t the end of the movie franchise/universe. but ig we’ll just have to wait and see!

so sorry i stated this yesterday morning to give my initial thoughts but then got busy and completely forgot to post/finish it. and today i started (and am close to finishing) a very long edit of the trailer, so be on the look out for that too!

genuinely i feel like this movie is gonna somehow be even more record breaking than any of the previous movies and i am so here for the hype 🙏

[proudfreakmetarusonikku]

thinking about transfem metal sonic again bc she’s like. the most transfem character in fiction whos not in any way actually transfem or coded transfem like it’s entirely unintentional and that’s what makes it so interesting to me. bc like her entire Thing is identity issues she was built to emulate, surpass, and be a superior version of sonic which like. we can talk about eggman hating sonic so much he literally made a better version of him as his own child another time but besides that metal's entire life has been being forced to fill the expectations placed on her to Be someone she can never be. and this is something that causes her a great deal of anguish! she literally has a mental breakdown over it it’s something that’s clearly traumatic and distressing to her bc she can’t do it! defeating and proving herself superior to sonic is something inexorably linked to her, and both cause her nothing but misery and are both very literally dehumanising towards her. she clings to them, bc she has nothing else and it’s the only path that she’s been allowed to even consider, but they don’t make her Happy. she wouldn’t be so fucking angry all the time if she was happy! but it’s what she’s literally been programmed to believe she wants even though chasing that ambition provides her no joy or relief.

and in sonic heroes, the pressure makes her snap. if she Has to fill the mould she’s forced into, then it’s the outside world saying she’s doing it wrong that’s the problem, because she Has to be perfect, right? metal sonic is the golden child out of all of her “siblings”, and while that means she’s not outright going to be destroyed by her father and faces much less verbal abuse and marginally more affection, it also means she’s forced to uphold the perfect image her father sees her as, else she fail and face the same treatment she’s seen her fellow badniks go through. and that image she’s always tried so, so hard to force herself to fit is that of her father's magnum opus, his masterpiece, a superior version of his enemy. and to be superior to sonic she has to Be sonic and so if everyone says she’s Not they have to be the ones in the wrong and not Her she has to be the real true superior sonic and she has to Prove it.

but the thing is, not only is she forcing herself into performing the perfect role set on her- one that’s specifically masculine- she also reinvents Herself. this is something in heroes a lot of people miss, but neo metal sonic isn’t an upgrade From Eggman to her (and also came After her breakdown, she did it Because she felt she couldn’t Beat Sonic And Therefore Be Him if she stayed the same) her neo form is entirely self designed, and it was done all by her own hands. neo metal sonic is probably the closest we can get to how metal actually wants to present herself to the world, that’s Literally just named to be the New Her, and. ma’am this is a goth girl.

like. not only is she Literally Wearing A Skirt, not only does she Literally Have Eyeliner, she's also designed in such a way it looks like she’s wearing clothes, which feels silly to bring up until you remember sonic anthro characters almost universally only wear clothes if they’re female. and neo metal sonic straight up has hatsune miku sleeves a belt with a flowy skirt and leg warmers but with spikes. like it’s already fem as shit (in a emo edgy fourteen year olds oc way) but like i'm pretty sure by mobian standards this is about as feminine as a murderous robot can reasonably get. and while obviously that doesn’t = gender, metal specifically presenting as feminine in her idealised form she designed herself, while having a meltdown because she’s unable to Be A Specific Boy and is having an identity crisis bc she’s miserable trying to chase that is… like, that’s just a closeted trans girl innit. like this is Very Obviously not the intended read but like… it’s an extremely obvious and resonant one?

metal is, canonically, a scared teenager. as in, she herself says that she was scared Before her transformation. she’s mentally like 15 afraid of failure with an abusive and neglectful father figure suffering from psychotic episodes brought about by golden child burnout. like that’s not how it’s phrased in a 2003 game rated 3 and up but that is like, objectively what’s happening in sonic heroes she’s very open about her motives that’s just canon. which doesn’t make her Trying To Burn A Toddler Alive in any way not absolutely horrible like people forget how excited she was to murder a group that included Multiple small children in it brutally she’s fucked up. but her issues with her identity are more tragic than anything. her being dehumanised and treated only as A Superior Sonic broke her. and when she finally is able to express herself in any way, she's able to present as, well, a very edgy teenage goth girl but in robot form! she’s a fucked up and evil person but she’s also unable to be her true self and she’s scared and frightened and alone. and she’s not incapable of good! she Did sacrifice her life for shadow in rivals 2 like she can care for people she’s not inherently evil she’s a Person just one that steals your IP address. but what Makes her evil is sticking to a path and presentation that makes her evil.

tl;dr: canonically transitioning would have saved her (this was not an intentional story decision they just accidentally made her ideal form goth girl hatsune miku before hatsune miku was even an idea)

[essycogany]

Amy Rose’s Quills

Yes, it’s that time again! Where I ramble about character designs and why I adore them so much. In this post, I want to talk about Amy’s quills and why I like the different ways it can be represented in official and none official media.

Just like Amy’s eye color. I’ll also make guesses as to why her overall design changed officially and in canon to make things interesting. Let’s get started!

Long Quills

This style is in Amy’s first design. Being the Minnie to Sonic’s Mickey, she had the same quill style as him. Aside from her bangs. While I do think the quills look cute, it almost makes Amy look like Sonic’s sister. I guess that’s why they changed it later on.

I say this only in comparison to her modern design. The Minnie inspiration is the reason she’s here. I’m only talking about her changing designs and making it less identical to Sonic.

My favorite iteration of her classic look is in Sonic Mania Adventures Christmas special. Just look at the differences. It may not be a HUGE change, but even her nose is slightly smaller. I just love the Mania’s designs in general. They’re awesome! I still do love the OG design too. Classic Amy is so precious.

Look at how Sonic’s quills are messier than Amy’s here. I think it gives them more dimension. Showing how one cares more about grooming themselves than the other. It’s kind of cool and I wish it was integrated in canon more. Not because it’s “important” but it’s a fun idea.

Short Quills

Ever since Sonic Adventure, Amy’s design changed immensely. Even Sonic himself noticed it in Adventure 1. Her outfit, eye color, nose, and quills (besides her iconic bangs) are different. Giving her an older more teenage look. I say this because Amy doesn’t look any older or younger then Sonic.

(Or any other teenage/young adult character for that matter)

They are sometimes even shown to have the same hight at times. Back to the quills, Amy now barely resembles her classic design and definitely looks less like a Minnie Mouse inspired design. Her classic design is still amazing, but I believe the change was a necessary one. The differences between her and Sonic are more apparent and noticeable and I think that’s a good thing.

Mixed

Here’s my own example, but there are many other fantastic fanartist who does something similar with both styles together.

Why do people like this quill style a bunch? I’d say it adds more flavor to her personality. Her having the classic long quills along with the short front dreads could symbolize her adventurous side along with her girly side. It blends the two nicely and overall looks visually interesting. While I will say her shorter quills does differentiate her better, I’ve seen plenty of artist change it up a bit in unique ways. It’s fun to create and see what ideas an artist could have for Amy.

Why Amy’s Quills Were Changed?

I’d say the official reason is because of the things I said before. But the in canon reason could be Amy wanting to look pretty enough for the next time she sees Sonic. Or perhaps she thought to change her appearance simply because she wanted to look cuter. Though I’d say the first answer is the most likely because her love for the blue blur was much more prominent in the past.

Conclusion

Did I use this as an excuse to gush about Amy again? Yep! I regret nothing. I love love LOVE Amy Rose and how interesting her design is in the past and present.

Stay Creative! 💜

[fandom-anthropology]

Heya! If you have a fankid you’re ok with appearing in my future video about Fankids and their appeal, feel free to dm me here or at @nostalgic-soda , my main! Send image refs and a general description!

[kittydoremi]

Thinking about some of the lyrics of My Destiny

"I remember memories from a long, long time ago. I can hear you calling me, to never let you go"

In the ending of 06, Sonic was calling to Elise. He remembered her and went out of his way to try to jog her memories. And Elise recognized his spirit in the wind, telling her to not forget about him 🥹😭💖

SonElise is a love that transcends time. Despite the timeline reset, Sonic and Elise still remember each other in their hearts. Their bond was that strong.

[sillybit]

Okay, Dark Beginnings: Episode 2 just dropped and After watching the whole episode & taking screenshots of it, I'm here to analyze the episode because I can >:D

Also, spoiler warning for Dark Beginnings: Episode 2 if you haven't watched it and this would probably be a multi partier post because of the picture limit on Tumblr posts.

{The Monster within Me}

Okay first, I'm surprised that the Sega or Sonic Team remembers the fact that Abe exists and was supposed to be Maria's childhood friend before working with G.U.N, glad they remember him.

With this scene right here, I'm guessing that Abe as a kid and maybe the other scientists saw Shadow has some type of monster which is supported by this line "Get that freak away from me!" That Abe said right in front of Maria.

Maria gets mad at him by shouting his name while he's running before entering the room. From this, Maria doesn't really like when others talk Shadow as like a monster, which is sad since he was supposed to be a G.U.N protector & cure to illnesses especially Maria's illness.

Maria sees Shadow while he's looking at a glass capsule with something in it, she goes up to him to check up on him which means Gerald (probably) and her is the only one in this Ark that sees him as a living being which in a way adds in more insight on Shadow's reasons (probably) back in SA2 before getting his real memories back.

This is the end for part 1 of the analysis post for Episode 2, I would like to see your review or analysis either in the comments or reblogs for this episode.

[lexicollectschai]

Since I started being part of the Sonic fandom and the Sonamy fandom i've noticed both of them had quite simmilar misunderstoods towards amy's character.

And it's... Amy never was created to be an "obssesive girl" "an obssesive fangirl" "an obssesive girl who only thinks about Sonic and nothing else"

And this is a consequence of the bad localization Sonic had in the West and how they didn't understand Amy's character, a girl who was created with many qualities japanese people love but the west considers it "weird", still affects her character to this day at this point we're many hear by mouth and mouth how Amy is but never had the thought of thinking "all of this is true?"

Look at this comparison between japanese!Sonic and American!Sonic and how different they treat Amy (minute 1:50 - 3:29)

https://youtu.be/PiSVTpRCGXA?si=cF_eEzFO5N3BPFQO

Thanks to this majority of western fans thought Sonic was always mad at Amy when in reality that was not the original intention and destroys all the concept of "obssesive" and "fangirl" were she cared for birdie and protected Gama from Sonic.

A girl who always tries to be better, helping people many wouldn't pay attention but she knows they need help.

A girl who is conscious she has to work hard than his friends with super powers

And Sonic being one of her main inspirations 'cause he represents what she wants to become: being free, going on your own having adventures, the excitement everything against the boring

And you would say "but in heroes she was an obssesive fangirl😭"

No, the fandom scaled the proportions and couldn't handle a single innofensive joke

Amy knew exactly exactly what she was doing telling him to "Marry him" as a joke. He would low his defenses and cause him to feel embarrassed and nervous 'cause she knows he's terrible at romance or i'm general, feelings

And many forgot that in the game Amy didn't know exactly why Sonic, Tails and knuckles we're together. In the beggining Amy saw Sonic in the paper and told us she hasn't seen Sonic in weeks and when she saw them thought they were just hanging out.

I'm talking about the girl who all the game supported,encouraging Cream and Big to rescue Chocola and Froggy and they needed someone as determinante, courageous as Amy who reminded her friends how brave they are

She even shows appreciation and love for the landscapes (just like Sonic)

"But- but in later games she was so obssesive and fangirl for Sonic 😭" Again bad localization for the west when in the original sources she was handled bit better than the West.

Also, Western has an obssesive to always point out the bad interpretations of female characters and saying why they are "the worst" "the most annoying characters" when at the same time try so hard to prove why this interpretation of a male character is not "bad enough" or "not the worst" and why even with bad characterizations he is still the best **cough****cough** Sonic and shadow respectively **cough****cough**

The character is not perfect, that's a reality.

She has strenghts and flaws that made her unique on her own. Her love for her friends (yes, this includes Sonic), the animals, the good and "Bad" robots and even characters who we're "devil"... She saw good, hope and love for them. She decides to help them being at their sides to show them there's always the option to chose a good path

She is the heart of all teams, she brings happines and hope to everyone. That's why all the cast loves and appreciates her and never refered to her like fandom does. That should tell you something

Personally I don't agree with the idea of "Amy is not an obssesive girl anymore and now she is a strong cute girl" when she has a l w a y s been a strong cute, bubbly, sassy, kinda bratty, compassive, energetic, silly girl but many think this is new when it's always been in front of you, you just decided to finally see the character and not prejuices

[pastelspindash]

prime spoilers

thinking about nine and how his dynamic with sonic affects his character and. The whole reason nine turned out the way he did is because sonic never showed up to chase off his bullies. He grew up alone and independant and shut out everyone. Tails, on the other hand, grew up clinging to sonic and hiding behind him and we saw in frontiers that part of his whole character development was letting sonic go a little and becoming his own person. Nine is the opposite of that, completely. He’s already his own person, perhaps too much. He grew up alone and tried to push sonic away and ironically ended up needing him to complete his plan, but what really ended the fight in prime was him letting sonic in and accepting his help and the hug solidified that. I just think its so cool how nine and tails growth as a character revolves around sonic holding him back in two very different ways, tails letting him go, and nine letting him in

[spruzu]

Sonic and shadow dynamic in sonic prime

Yes, i am doing this rant now because it's been on my mind too much and i need to talk about it.

Look at them, silly guys ⬇

So we all know that Sonic and Shadow are always seen as rivals right? Off topic, but personally i hope in Sonic x Shadow Generations Sega changes that but we'll just have to wait and see. In Sonic prime, they are obviously shown off as rivals, starting off having a fight and Shadow being pissed of with Sonic through out pretty much all of the second season because he shattered the prism and broke reality but we also see that they do have to team up because of that. We get to the last episode of season 2 and the whole 'Nines betrayal' takes place. Shadow did have every right to be annoyed at Sonic and he does say ''Sonic, i told you Nine couldn't be trusted.'' Of course pulling the 'i told you so' line shows he's very much bothered about the situation they're in, but then he goes on to say ''Whatever he's up to, it's causing this world to fracture.'' in saying that, trying to make Sonic come to his senses of what's around him and to stop focusing on the situation he's put himself and Shadow in. He wants Sonic to stop his classic way of thinking about the present situation he's in and to start thinking about the reality around them. Shadow also knew his and Sonics lives were more important in that moment than the shards and he wanted Sonic to see that to. Then of course Sonic goes on to say ''I don't understand, why would he-'' but getting cut off by Shadow ''Pull yourself together! This mountain is decaying, and it's going to take us with it. We have to run.'' Then proceeding to take Sonic by the hand and dragging him out the mountain, unwillingly. Shadow doesn't care about the fact Sonic is upset that Nine took the shard, he cares about the fact his and Sonics lives are at higher risk.

Through out all of that part, it's shown that Shadow wants Sonic to be like him. To have a straight forward tactic, to think before he acts. This is clearly shown when they're escaping Ghost Hill. Shadow is saying out the plan he has in mind to Sonic to make sure that they BOTH make it out alive. Ahh teamwork...

He then again, has to pull Sonic out of spiralling down a 'my friends are gone and it's all my fault moment.' when Sonic sees his ghost friends. This time Shadows face is completely unamused. He see his tactic of trying to get Sonic to focus on safety didn't work. ''I thought we went over this.'' blatantly shows that. He tries stop Sonic getting any closer but Sonic just pushes him out the way. Then, when Sonics ghost friends start decaying, it's shown then that Sonic has FINALLY come to his senses and knows they need to get out and get safe.

Just in this episode it's shown that Sonic thinks on his feet, plans are a big no no for him and that's exactly what Shadow is the opposite of. Shadow is the guy who makes sure they're safe and are able to stay alive, yes he still thinks on his feet but not the way Sonic does. Shadow takes the lead in a lot of season 3 because of that.

I would go on and on for the whole entire season about this but i'm not, because i want to talk about the ending.

Ahh yes, the ending we all know and love. Sonic sacrifices himself and nearly dies in Shadows arms on the way back to Green Hill.

WE LITERALLY SEE SHADOWS EARS LOWER AND HIS FACE DROP. HE CARES ABOUT SONIC!!! That care is shown in tiny parts through the whole season, Shadow getting Sonic out of the Grim so Nine doesn't use sonic energy, helping in the battle blah blah blah. But this is hits the nail on the head. All the small build up of 'Oh Shadow's helping Sonic, that wasn't very expected' is finally used.

Shadow taking the lead in situations where Sonic could and probably would get himself killed is Shadow caring about Sonic... and himself. Yes of course Shadow cares about his own life and getting Green Hill back and is probably still pissed off at sonic through out all of this still but it's shown way less.

In a way, they're shown as team mates, the beginning of friends... who are mean to each other BUT WE MOVE PAST THAT.

I know their whole shmuck is that they're rivals and they hate each other but it's finally nice to see that they can work together like in the ending of SA2. I hope to see that again in Sonic x Shadow Generations and not just them fighting constantly because it gets boring. Also not to mention, Rouge is SEEN helping Team Sonic fight Eggman in Sonic Prime so, may i say Shadow is a bit left out there he should join in the fighting instead of brooding the little grump.

Anyways i think that's all i have to say, if i repeated myself my bad but i'm very good at that.

This is also not me shipping Sonic and Shadow. I don't mind people shipping them, i get why but i hate the people who are rlly weird about it...

ANYWAYS BYE

[titaniium999]

imagine being always seen as a derivative of someone else rather than vice versa. imagine being programmed to destroy the person you were designed after, programmed to see yourself as the better one of the two, yet you can never defeat the 'inferior' one. you're supposed to be the better one, yet you can never live up to that. you're supposed to be his greatest creation, yet you constantly fail him. you're given a powerful intelligence and even the ability to feel some emotions, yet you're treated like an object and only wanted when you can do something productive and relied on because you're a robot, a machine, you're supposed to be perfect, infallible, you're supposed to do this, do that, and if you make one tiny mistake, if you fail, if you're wrong, if you rebel, show independence, something is horribly wrong with you because machines aren't supposed to be like that and you need to be reprogrammed. you'll never get to be a person. not even close. and you know it. you can't even get infected with the metal virus like the rest of them. you'll never get to be who you wish you were.

[lymooniee]

Why I hc Shadow as autistic:

Just gonna preface this before I begin, this is all for fun and is a headcanon of mine. Your headcanons may be different to mine and that's valid too! Any grammar mistakes uh- ignore because I'm too lazy to edit this like crazy.

I will also link the video I made of all the moments, too, since it is way too long to post it on here. Keep in mind that not every moment is in the video, but like 95 percent of it is.

Shadow for me has always shown plenty of signs of being autistic, I'll provide as much evidence as I possibly can while doing my best to try and keep this at a reasonable length.

Shadow has always been the silent type of character when he is written correctly or, in other words, whenever Shiro Maekawa was involved with his writing in SA2, heroes and 06. Currently Prime too has done his character justice. I have to state this because I feel this is the best possible way of actually understanding Shadow as a character, so I'll mainly be touching his good characterizations and then some from his own game (not a lot however). He was silent, lonely, calm and often was in his head more than outwardly speaking out. I believe many autistic people like myself, connected to this side of him. Facing with so many adversities because of our differences from others, we become shut in and lonely too, since most autistic people don't feel as if they fit in. You can easily argue this is because of his ptsd from losing Maria, but I'd like to challenge the idea that it can easily be both and his ptsd enhances his traits.

I'll first begin with SA2, Shadow's first scene with eggman to me is quite hilarious if you put a different lens on it, the way he stand there ignoring Eggmans questions and then quickly demands Eggman to abide his rules. It puts Eggman into shock, but I think you could tie these moments that Shadow has as an autistic trait of his. Social cues are quite difficult for a lot of autistic people, and having no filter adds into this difficulty. The way Shadow ignores Eggmans questions to quickly ask him to do what he wants instead really emphasizes this point I made.

I love how he remains calm too, he doesn't yell this at Eggman and instead walks away casually and confidently. It's always been one of my most favourite moments with him. It really does make him stand out as he was able to influence Eggman to follow his wishes. If we want to talk about when he gets introduced to Sonic, I find this moment also again pretty funny in an endearing way when you put in this perspective. Sonic running to him asking Shadow to say something to speak, as Shadow stares at Sonic with silence. He's once again in his head more so than externally present, he also may be struggling to craft up a response or is at a lost with why Sonic is desperate for an answer. Conversations or socially interacting with people is challenging for most autistic people for a plethora of reasons so anything can really explain why Shadow here wasn't responding.

I've also found some of his moments when thinking of Maria (two specific moments being when Amy encourages him to help fight and the other being before Rouge approaches him to ask why he saved her), these moments he's very in tuned with his thoughts. After realizing his true promise with Maria he is in his head not responding right away to Amy, he sheds a tear and runs quickly to help and exclaims how he has to go now to keep that promise. This confuses Amy, however she doesn't stop Shadow or anything. When Rouge approaches Shadow and saying it was unexpected and unlike him to save her, he answers by saying that he didn't go to save her and was doing it for the chaos emeralds. She clearly catches on that this isn't the entire truth, this moment to me is harder to explain. But I think it's because of how he struggles to express his true intentions and feelings in the matter, similar to the Amy one before because he doesnt understand his own empathy.

Now one of if not the most obvious moments in SA2 is when Amy mistakes Shadow for Sonic, he slowly turns to look at her. Doesn't say a word or anything the entire time, and just continues to stare at her. I always loved this moment. I feel this one just speaks for itself lmao.

Now moving onto Sonic 06 moments (sorry there's not a lot in heroes tbh. There is a lot in Sonic X/Prime, Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog, and the Twitter takeovers though!) Sonic 06 main one points out how he is going to discover himself and make his own path. I've always loved this about him as a character, he's not there for anybody but himself, he knows he is different. He will embrace this about himself and not let others try to make up what he has to be. Other subtle traits in 06 are also ways in which he responds to those around him, head nods or simple "yes" responses. Again, it's his way of expressing himself in conversation that really hints at his struggles for social cues. I also adore when Rouge asks him a question and he once again demands for something, and she is like "ok cool, but you didn't answer my question?" Moments like that not only add a lot of charm to him, but something I really connected too because I do this all the time without realizing it. I think partially it's because I get stuck with my own thoughts and those questions I feel I've already got it answered for myself so it's prolly similar where that realization that you may know the answer already, but the other doesn't just doesn't click together sometimes. It could also be because he needs to get out what he needs right away to feel a sense of stability.

Sonic x just has a lot of funny moments that really make his character shine, when he crashes the plane with Espio, Vector and Charmy. He doesn't use his words and instead guides it down forcefully, I similarly do stuff like this where I struggle to express what I need or have to do so I usually just do it without saying it. This happens often when people are in the way of something I have to get to. Like if I have to throw out something for example. I also love that when Espio asks why Shadow didn't just ask, Shadow responds by saying he needs to go find Dark Oak and then just crashes straight into the wall. He really just has such a difficult time expressing exactly why he needs to do things lmao. I also love how he has a challenging time understanding instructions. Eggman asks him to do something and because to Shadow they didn't feel clear, he asks more than once for confirmation. Or when he gives the silent treatment to Rouge and she teases him about it, he just walks away without a word. Now this isn't only applied to Sonic X but Shadow has a really REALLY REAAAALLLY difficult time finding the true intentions of people, Sonic X he gets upset at Rouge and Chris for calling him out on trusting Eggman. He gets defensive and argues back at them saying that Eggman is worthy of trusting because he knows the most about him. It's all he has even though Eggman has been evidenced of tricking others around him. There's countless of other times where Shadow struggles with this, like basically every moment in his own game where he blindly trusts Black Doom. One other moment too I can't exactly remember which game it was, but Rouge was clearly lying and goes "you can trust me! really!!" And he does and then tells her absolutely everything that she wanted to hear.

Sonic prime moments are a lot less, but I do feel his way of just remaining very inwardly or to himself about things can once again be his difficulty in trusting. The way he also overanalyzes a lot of things around him as well. I also just love certain scenes like, "they're air shoes" or "hardly, I'm the ultimate lifeform" because he is blunt and took it quite literally. As he usually does in Prime, where he takes things quite seriously in general. I also feel because sonic is very VERY adhd coded in prime, it really does emphasize the contrast between the two of how someone with autism may interact with someone with adhd. In the most recent episode, he once again finds it difficult to express his protectiveness and plays it off. Or when he does compliment Sonic, he just glares at him when Sonic somewhat jokes around because it felt out of character for Shadow to do that. Even though Shadow was just being blunt about his thoughts and had a moment where he does express properly, but then his glare somewhat shows once again how he has a difficult time crafting up responses lmao.

Some more stuff but more miscellaneous, the Twitter takeovers is funny but it depends on if we want to take it as canon. He loves dry foods, adores kittens to the point he wants an orphanage (connection to animals on a deeper level), he has an organized bedtime routine, and yeah that's basically all the ones I can think of atm. These are quite explanatory I feel. Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog shows he has empathy but struggles to show it similar to basically every other moment I've described, but also just love that he can't handle computers I think that's so funny idk why. I can't even describe how it's an autistic moment for him it just feels like it. He stims with his quills a lot as well, which ugh I adore so so so much.

A lot of these things I've expressed about Shadow come from just from me loving him but also being able to see myself in him as well. I'm happy that Prime is bringing back his character to what it was, I think so many people love Shadow in the fandom simply because of how much they relate to him. He's such great representation despite it not being canon, because of how easily those can see themselves in him. I really do love Shadow and I know this is super long so if you read this, thank you and I hope you enjoyed it.

Have a cute photo of him as a reward ♡

[sonics-atelier]

Addressing Overbearing Behavior in Fandom Communities : A Call for Respect and Boundaries .

( please stop acting like everyone's parents go adopt a rock or something )

1. Polarization : The ACOTAR fandom is deeply polarized, with distinct pro and anti sides that often clash in heated debates. This polarization creates an "us vs. them" mentality, leading to animosity and hostility between fans.

2. Harassment and Defamation : Both pro and anti factions engage in harassment and defamation tactics against those with opposing views. This includes personal attacks, spreading rumors, and even cyberbullying. Such behavior creates a toxic environment where fans feel unsafe expressing their opinions.

3. Plagiarism and Unauthorized Sharing : Some fans take it upon themselves to share others' writing without permission or proper credit, leading to instances of plagiarism and copyright infringement. This not only violates the rights of the original creators but also fosters an atmosphere of mistrust and disrespect within the fandom.

4. Overzealous Policing : Certain members of the fandom appoint themselves as "fandom police," aggressively enforcing their own interpretations of canon and attacking anyone who deviates from their standards. This behavior stifles creativity and discourages diverse perspectives within the community.

5. Gatekeeping and Elitism : A sense of gatekeeping and elitism pervades the ACOTAR fandom, with some fans asserting their superiority based on arbitrary criteria such as length of time in the fandom or level of devotion to the series. This exclusivity alienates newer or casual fans and fosters a toxic hierarchy within the community.

6. Cancel Culture : The ACOTAR fandom is not immune to cancel culture, where fans attempt to "cancel" creators or fellow fans for perceived transgressions. This can lead to witch hunts and mob mentality, where individuals are ostracized and vilified without due process.

7. Lack of Constructive Dialogue : Meaningful discussion and debate are often overshadowed by vitriol and aggression within the fandom. Instead of engaging in respectful discourse, fans resort to personal attacks and insults, hindering the potential for constructive dialogue and growth.

8. Impact on Mental Health : The toxicity within the ACOTAR fandom takes a toll on the mental health of fans, leading to stress, anxiety, and even depression. Constant exposure to negativity and conflict can be emotionally draining and detrimental to overall well-being.

Overall, the ACOTAR fandom's toxic dynamics stem from a combination of polarization, harassment, gatekeeping, and cancel culture. Addressing these issues requires a collective effort to promote empathy, respect, and inclusivity within the community.

[fluideli123]

RE: Sonadow God Fic - How dare you where can I read it?

Its currently in the works but here's a sample of the prologue! Feel free to send in asks! The more questions the more information I can share and the more the story progresses!

There was a timeless moment when the universe was but a whisper, the beginnings of a dream in the void. The Endlessness, a concept beyond one's grasp, cradled itself in the chill of oblivion, its womb carrying the seed of obscurity, the First Ever Being.

With the rare collision of atoms, a singular dance of creation commenced. The Endlessness, a void of potential, sensed the stirrings of warmth, the birth of something within its vast emptiness. A sensation so alien, potential energy yearning to be set free, waiting for the touch of nothingness to ignite a dazzling burst of existence.

It ignited everything in a blinding white, a grand event that bathed the Endlessness with dust and gas. These elements circled themselves closer and closer, pulled towards the center of the Beginning, matched by millions and millions of other specs in space that were born alongside The First. It pressed into the being, breathing life into the first eyes to gaze into the glimmering warmth of the universe. 

It was a sight, a symphony of light and matter. The being felt everything, every atom, every push and shove of gravity, the rotation of newborn stars, and the cycle of creation and destruction. They breathed out stardust; far away, flares twinkled back, glowing hotter. Space rose and fell in every movement of their discorporate form.

Round and round, the Endlessness filled itself, breaking apart, branching off and away, duplicates of celestial realms reaching out and out. Astroids struck one another, pulling into clumps of debris to form planets, belts of rock and ice. Stars exploded into supernovas, spreading themselves across the universe and feeding into new lives.

The constant reenactment of rebirth, so bright and warm, complimented the sudden dark chill of death. They choose names for them, no matter their purpose or formation. On and on, it continued; stories passed as time held every soul close, carving each living thing into the stone of the earth.

It never stopped.

The First watched and watched and...watched.

Suddenly, bright lights bloomed from its core, and colorful, captivating crystals fell into its palms. Shining and shimmering, pulling them towards a particular part of the universe where it was planted within a deep, untouchable cavern. Nestled in the arms of Mother Earth to keep safe.

That is until a new name was called so vehemently that the universe shattered into phases of its former self, rattling off multiverses, broken panes of separate lives newborn.

And all the while, all the first could hear was a name so foreign yet familiar.

"Sonic! No!"

[000marie198]

I don't know if anyone else has talked about this already but, oh well!

So anyway, let's talk about the Chaos Council. It's made up of five different versions of Eggman.

Now remember my theory on how all the alternates are basically shattered parts of the original? That they're the aspects of the main characters taken to the extreme? Well, I believe the presence of the Chaos Council proves that theory. Cuz when you notice, there are no alternates of Eggman anywhere else throughout the Shatterverses but there are alternates of everyone else. This means all the Eggman alternates are in one place, aka New Yoke, as part of the CC. Why does that serve to prove that the alternates are shattered parts of a whole? Well, for many reasons but I'm gonna talk about three major ones.

Firstly, something that Mister Dr. Eggman said struck a chord while I was rewatching the premiere episode. While introducing the Chaos Council to Sonic, he said,

"One makes five, five makes one."

This dialogue literally and very clearly hints at them being 5 parts of a whole. A major clue or a foreshadowing if you will.

Secondly, their personalities. They all clearly reflect a certain major trait of Eggman. Introduction wise, Dr. Done-It is an aged man who likes to yell orders and complain.

He is literally, as Sonic would put it, a grumpy old man. That's the part of Eggman which gets annoyed at all the failed plans and groans in agitation and yells at his creations and curses out Sonic. Also the part that keeps urging to get a move on.

Next, there's Dr. Deep.

If his name and mannerisms aren't hinting enough, that's the part of Eggman that sometimes comes up at the end of the adventure when he's standing alone somewhere. The philosophical part, the part that expressed his feelings on Gerald, the part that would sometimes save Sonic because it wouldn't be a victory unless he's the one defeating his opponent. But this is not all, Deep is also the part which holds all of Eggman's battle prowess and drip. In short, he's the right-brained part of Eggman.

As for Dr. Don't, the emo teenager.

This is the guy who points out a clear cut obvious answer instead of dawdling . And he controls some remote features of the headquarters. He's constantly playing videogames and answers questions without even looking up. His brain is probably in constant activity, figuring things out, forming deductions and conclusions. This is the scientist side of Eggman. The one that holds 300 IQ and internally goes, "I'm surrounded by idiots." The one which is unable to get along with anyone because no one can think on his motive and level.

And then there's Babble, aka the angry baby.

One would think why someone like Eggman would have a baby as a part of his personality, right? Well, this baby is the most like Eggman out of all of them. Hear me out! Dr. Babble represents the anger and ruthlessness in Eggman. Babble, out of all of them, is Eggman's evil side. Babble loves torturing his victims and enjoys it, he demands that they harm their opponents and is merciless. Babble represents the part of Eggman that... destroyed the moon (get out of my head Snapcube dubs), unleashed the Metal Virus, Roboticizes mobians, all the mean stuff. And finally, the baby whines, a lot. All of Eggman's whining is squeezed in this one tiny baby.

Finally, the main member, Mister Dr. Eggman.

In my opinion, this guy is the aspect of Eggman that gloats and showboats. The one who gets absolutely smug and giddy if the plans are working, the part of Eggman that lets out those loud evil cackles and monologues. The face, so to speak. He is the part that makes Eggman go overconfident or reveal his plans or manipulates or banters, the part that makes him put his face as a logo on everything, the part that makes him build showy mechs and aircrafts and stuff.

Now that these people are discussed as various aspects of Eggman, let's get to the third and final major reason which indicates why the alternates are aspects of the originals; the Prism shards. When the Paradox Prism broke, it was broken up into five shards; yellow, red, blue, green, purple. There are five shards and five Eggman alternates.

But wait.

Why are there five alternates of Eggman when we have only come across three for the rest of the characters? Why don't the numbers add up? Well, good question. And my theory is that since the Prism broke up into five shards, there should be five sets of everything! Five shards, five Shatterworlds, five sets of alternates. There are already five of Eggman. This means there are still two shards missing and two sets of alternates we haven't seen. We know the purple shard belongs to The Grim because its gateway was purple and its entrance was in the shape of the purple shard. And we haven't seen Rouge's main alternate like we've seen Nine, Thorn and Dread. That's going to be the world where the yellow shard resides.

But this all leaves another mystery. Five shards means five worlds and five sets of alternates, right? We already know about all five alternates of Eggman, we already know the colors of the five shards (Red, Green, Blue, Yellow, Purple), and we know about four of the five worlds while the one associated with yellow shard hasn't been shown in the series yet. That world would contain its own set of alternates. That makes four sets of alternates. What about the fifth? Where are the alternates that, logically, should belong to The Grim? Where are they? Excluding yellow, what happened to the fifth world and its alternates? Where is the purple Shard that is associated with The Grim? What happened to this world and its inhabitants?