#sonic is tails’s number one fan and supporter

[0vergrowngraveyard]

i like to think sonic wrote the “what about year of tails???” on the chalkboard because you know damn well he’d be so excited for that

[lazorbeanz]

Late night

Unbreakable Bond Headcanons

• when Tails’ fur has grown out quite a bit, sonic will tie up his long fur to give him lil pigtails

• Tails really likes Owl City, and will frequently play the albums on the speakers in his lab while he’s tinkering around on his projects. He finds the songs very relaxing to him….But when a banger or a really good part of a song comes on, he turns up the speaker volume and it becomes a dancing musical number in his lab. If sonic is there, it a dance off against his older brother…he gets no work done afterwards

• tails will randomly decide to fly up to the nearest tree, cling onto one of the branches and cry out to sonic for help, who will rush over and help bring him down safely. Tails will be like “thank you! 😊” and go back to his day. Meanwhile sonic stops and pauses, suddenly realising his baby brother was plenty capable of getting down himself in the first place

• Tails uses Scratch (it’s a fun, goofy lil coding program) to make silly little games for Cream or Charmy to play when he visits them. Sometimes he’ll teach his friends how to do a simple code on it.

• Often at times he will catch Sonic playing his scratch games. He’ll go into his brother’s room, and find the hedgehog sitting on his bed, face glued to the screen on his phone, his quills raised in deep concentration. Who knew his brother was so keen on trying to set the record for catching the most falling tacos?

• Sonic will look up to find his little brother leaning on the door frame. “Isn’t it a little too…I don’t know…childish, for you?” the fox teased, in which Sonic retorts in a backfiring of compliments and rambling on about what almost appears to be his newest addiction. Deep inside, Tails is overjoyed that his brother loves his work so much, despite its such simplicity.

• Sonic could look Tails dead in the eye, and still not catch a single word he said

Tails: …okay you copy that?

Sonic: …🙂 (imagine that small loading symbol over his head lol)

Tails: *sigh* so as I was saying…

• So in the Mario and Sonic Olympic Games (specifically the 2020 one) sonic does this victory emote in soccer when he scores a goal…I like to call it the Airplane..

Sonic heads outside about to go on another run, when he spots Tails running around doing the Airplane. Tails sees his brother and runs to meet him.

“Whatcha doin’ bud?” Sonic asks, ruffling his hand through the fur on the kit’s head

“I’m you!” He responds, explaining about his victory moves he did in the Olympics.

“You’re so cool..” Tails looks up at his older brother, his big baby blue eyes sparkling in admiration of his favourite person.

It took everything in Sonic’s being not to break down sobbing after those words.

Then Tails grabs Sonic’s hand, begging him to do the airplane with him.

Why go run anywhere else when you can run around in circles, being silly with your greatest admirer, supporter, fan…brother

[thankskenpenders]

I'm a huge fan of Ian, but one criticism of him that I've seen that I kind of agree with is that he sometimes falls into "look how much I know about Sonic" in his writing. For example, a number of references in Frontiers like Tails namedropping Dark Gaia out of nowhere. It's a nice change of pace from Sega not knowing where they wanted to go with Sonic for like a decade, but it might be too far in the opposite direction. What do you think?

There's definitely a thin line between Ian's love of references and lore and lyric quotes being fun and grating, yeah. I think he tends to do it well, choosing things that will support and enhance the story he's trying to tell rather than just dropping random references for the sake of it, but sometimes it can kinda make me roll my eyes and go "okay, Ian, settle down buddy." He readily admits that sometimes he just really wants to play with all the toys in the toy box.

I think an example I might point do would be some of the Classic Sonic comics for IDW. The Tails special in particular felt like it relied very heavily on Ian being excited to use the Witchcarters again, and to use Flicky Island as a setting, but I felt like the story left me wanting a little more beyond just "this obscure old stuff is back again." (The art in all the Classic stuff is phenomenal, though, of course.)

Frontiers absolutely is jam packed full of references, but I think it works there because acknowledging and building off of decades of continuity is one of the main points of the story in Frontiers. It's part of a greater effort Sega has been making to acknowledge Sonic's legacy after much of the late '00s and early 2010s were spent being kind of ashamed of that stuff and trying to streamline the series. Frontiers, meanwhile, wanted to look back on all those past adventures and their inconsistent writing and figure out how to wring some proper character arcs out of them, so that the cast can reflect on those arcs and figure out what they want to do next. Mining hit-or-miss old material for a compelling throughline like that has always been something Ian's excelled at - it's literally what he did to the Archie comics when he started out - and having the characters acknowledge their past adventures is a part of that. It gives us a sense that Sonic and co. really have gone through a lot together, and that those experiences have shaped who they are today.

It's also worth remembering that a ton of more casual Sonic fans aren't as immersed in the state of the canon or Ian's referential writing style as we are. When Frontiers came out you'd see people say stuff like "OMG, Sonic mentioned Jet the Hawk!! I didn't know Sonic Riders was canon to the main series! I loved those games!" That kind of reaction is probably a big part of why those references are there. Sega wants fans to know that Sonic DOES have continuity, unlike a series like Mario where every game and sub-series is kind of its own thing, and that all the old stuff still matters. And if that's what you wanna do, then Ian's the guy for the job.

[welcome-to-green-hills]

"So, how did you know it wasn't the real Emerald?" "Because you just told me, fox boy!"

"I never called Sage family. How did you?" Because you just told me, Eggman!"

THAT'S MY FOX BOY!

(I also love how much it's implied Sonic always tunes into to his little bro's show whenever he's not a guest at first given how this time he immediately knew to go to Tails' workshop and attack Eggman)

Sonic is definitely Tails’ number one fan with his TsilsTubes. It’s so cute how much he supports Tails’ interests❤️✨

[egg-poll]

EGG POLL: ROUND 1 PART 1 RECAP

the first half of round 1 was very competitive, with a few unexpected turnarounds! as always guys lets try to remember that this is just a silly competition for fun, and whoever ends up winning every headcanon here is awesome just by nature of making it into the tournament!

hunter vs tobias

this poll was a lot closer than expected, especially considering hunter was the #1 most submitted character! tobias had a really strong showing, especially with a lot of campaigning in the post tags, but in the end hunter pulled through. this result could suggest hunter is a lot weaker than initially thought though, will he make it to the next round?

gene vs neo

this one was also surprisingly competitive, with a lot of campaigning on both sides. gene got the most initial nominations so he was the expected winner, but neo is one of the most classic trans readings of a character, and got a lot of support from people who might not have thought of him originally! in the end neo pulled ahead. neo and hunter will certainly make an interesting match up next round!

ashe vs leonardo

ashe was one of the most interesting nominees to watch going in, as he ended up sweeping the nominations with 18 submissions! in the end though, the huge support for this headcanon among just roll with it fans couldn't offset the fandom's small size. but this was in no small part thanks to the tmnt fandom's rallying around leonardo! both of these characters got a huge amount of support, and we ended up with our first two pieces of amazing fanart! but if tmnt's success in the autism swag summit is any indicator, leo might be a competitor to watch going into future rounds!

rain vs finn

rain was another nominee with a size disadvantage going in. while ward fans did their best to rally, they couldn't beat finn, another character with an overall few number of submissions but who ended up winning from sheer popularity. ward fans took it in stride though, with some noting that rain losing in the first round might be the most in character outcome. we also got another great piece of fanart! finn did not get a lot of campaigning, definitely indicating he might be in danger in future rounds.

ralsei vs ken

this was a difficult one for me as i really love both of these headcanons! digimon fans presented some great arguments, but couldn't overcome the trans ralsei headcanon (which has years of support, pioneered by yours truly...) time will tell if deltarune fans can push this headcanon forward to other rounds! either way trans girl ken will surely live on in our hearts :)

sonic vs haruhi

this one was a pretty surprising upset! sonic was one of the most nominated characters, but got beaten out by haruhi who actually received zero direct nominations. sonic fans likely put more weight behind tails, which is overall a more popular headcanon. some argued haruhi is too textually trans to really be considered an egg (although by not being canon she still fits into the rules of this competition). this argument will surely come into play in future rounds though, and likely with mion vs lake in part 2 of this round!

luigi vs double d

another upset, although not the most surprising one. although luigi recieved a lot of support in the nomination round, fans overall decided this headcanon didn't hold up to scrutiny quite as well as double d, who is arguably(?) canon already (but still eligible according to tournament rules) i would not be surprised to see double d go even further in future rounds!

tails vs fuuta

this was another with a pretty obvious outcome from the beginning, with transfem tails being another super classic egg headcanon. fuuta didn't really stand much of a chance, with some fans calling it a popularity poll (this is just how seeding works guys, i'm sorry!) despite their smaller fanbase though, milgram fans showed a lot of support and provided evidence of their own. while egg fuuta will always live on, sonic fans may end up pushing even harder for tails in future rounds with sonic eliminated. only time will tell!

thats all for this time guys, be sure to come back tomorrow for part 2 of this round!

[jeysecretive]

YEESSSSSSSS I FINALLY WRITE IT!1!!1

I came up with an AU of the future(Sonic), but in the years in which Sonic's adventures officially take place (Sonic IDW, let's say). It's a version of Sonic's world that started developing technologically much earlier than in canon. Cities have displaced almost all plants and wildlife, and life has been brought to automaticity. Jey enters this world with the goal of finding Sonic in order to prevent some kind of disaster in the digital world. But he fails to find Sonic the Hedgehog, as there are only different kinds of robots and clouds of poisonous gases in the streets. It turns out that all the inhabitants of this world have long since gotten used to being outside all the time, they live in their apartments. If you think that they are all fat and flabby uglies, you are far mistaken. Every apartment, every room in these high-rise buildings has its own atmosphere. Someone with enough finances has reproduced in his apartment a tropical beach or a lawn with rare plants, someone has a real northland. Many Mobians play sports and keep themselves in good shape. But they rarely go outdoors, because to go outside, they have to wear a gas mask and preferably a suit, so as not to be poisoned by waste. Every year the ecosystem of the planet was destroyed more and more. But many of the inhabitants didn't know as much about it as they should have. They lived in perfectly designed worlds with clean air, food, and water: everything they needed to live comfortably. But it wasn't just the poisons oozing out of the streets that caused the devastation. The outside world went into stasis thanks to an online tournament held around the world once a year. It connected together fans and supporters from the most lost corners of the planet. It was the annual finale of the game "Frontiers of Speed," played by almost the entire population of Mobius from the ages of seven to fifty. The game, created only recently by some anonymous genius nicknamed "Tails", was ranked number one in the world in terms of users, popularity, and quality of controls and graphics. It was a seemingly ordinary motorcycle racing simulator, but it was so beloved by its fans that it was honored as the "best game of the decade". There wasn't a single person in the world who didn't know about this game. And this time, big part of the city sat at the screens to watch the stages of the game, and part went to separate rooms equipped specifically for big races. But in the competition only a select few had a chance to win. Only ten players made it to the finals, and only one was awarded the winner's cup.

But in the last two years, the players have had even less of a chance, as only one user named Blue Blur has held the lead.

He is as famous as he is mysterious and hides his identity perfectly. Almost nothing is known about him, but rumor has it that he knows the developer of "Frontiers of Speed" personally. Ignoring all the rules of using the in-game equipment, he performed the most complicated stunts and rode faster than anyone else. His records were so unimaginable that no one in the world has ever managed to repeat them.

But all this gaming mega universe with its sense of adrenaline, speed, passion, the sound of tires rubbing against the asphalt can collapse overnight. And to save it, you will have to gain access to the highest privileges of the winner, hack into the general game network and extract a lot of information, rewriting hundreds of security protocols. But to do that, you have to defeat the Blue Blur. If you get the top spot, you could find out where Sonic is. Or maybe... You don't have to find him at all...

Note: At some point in his adventures, Jey created a handheld device containing a self-developing AI. At its core was woven in with some of Nicole's core coding. In essence, this AI was her son. (Let's not forget that Jey travels a lot of places, and the Archie universe is absolutely no exception)

But specifically in this story, this device was just a high-tech computer about two-thirds the size of a Nintendo Switch. Jey used it to infiltrate the game's system, but more on that later.

[inamindfarfaraway]

Tails in Sonic Underground Headcanons

Companion piece to this.

It’s the anniversary of Robotnik’s takeover of Mobius. He’s increased and upgraded security measures to finally capture and roboticize the Hedgehog triplets, and preferably Queen Aleena too, because what could be better than taking their minds and souls on the exact date he took everything else from them, with his great big celebration of that being the last thing they ever see? The triplets try to be careful, but reveal themselves to stop Robotnik doing something awful, like executing protesters or crushing a homeless person beneath his giant parade tank. They’ve been distracted with grief and anger the whole day, so they’re just uncoordinated enough to give the SWATbots an edge and are quickly overwhelmed by their sheer numbers.

Suddenly another SWATbot approaches from a different direction and starts attacking the ones that have got them. They don’t know what’s going on, but aren’t gonna complain. The chaos and confusion allows several other civilians and protesters to leave the scene too. After escaping, the triplets wonder who reprogrammed the SWATbot. If it were a fellow Resistance member they would have heard about it in advance, as Robotnik’s coding are notoriously difficult to mess with - so difficult that Manic and Cyrus combined haven’t been able to manage it.

The answer appears out of an alleyway: an eight-year-old yellowish orange fox boy clutching a tablet, with… two tails? He assumes responsibility for repurposing the SWATbot and sending it to rescue them, though modestly and bashfully, being more excited to meet the triplets, his idols, and wanting to know if they’re okay. He introduces himself as Miles Prower. Sonic recognizes that last name, to Sonia and Manic’s further confusion. Miles explains the story of his parents.

Amadeus and Rosemary Prower were perhaps the greatest engineers in the country, friends of the royal family and Cyrus’s father Lionel, using their technology for the betterment of the people. Robotnik stole many of their concepts and devices when he took the throne. They opposed his coup and were among the founding members and leaders of the Resistance, which led Robotnik to erase all public data on them and give himself credit for everything they did. Hence why only Sonic knows of them - Uncle Chuck taught him. But he never knew they had a kid. Miles was born and raised in secret. When he was just four, his parents were captured and roboticized. They had barely enough time to leave him at an inconspicuous children’s home and give him a tablet, named the Miles Electric in his honour, that contained a complete database of both their research and inventions; and the family’s personal records, e.g. Rosemary and Amadeus’s wedding photos, Miles’s sonogram photos, birth certificate and baby pictures, voice recordings they left for him, etc.. The Miles Electric was its namesake’s closest friend. It was almost like his parents were still there with him... almost.

Unfortunately, most of the other kids scorned and bullied him for his mutant second tail, prodigious intelligence and shy disposition. So much so that by the age of seven he decided he’d be better off alone and ran away, living on the streets, stealing food and money to survive and overall doing his best to stay out of people’s way. His parents had been heroes, and they’d fallen. He could never hope to be like them. There was no point he could see in trying to be brave, since in his experience it would only get you punished. He was similar to Nine in Sonic Prime, but less hostile and more plain sad.

The Sonic Underground pulled him out of that misery. These new heroes brought the Resistance unprecedented success and support, and as the true heirs to Aleena’s throne, embodied the hope that Mobius could be saved. That things could get better. Miles became their devoted fan and has been following their progress for months. But chronically insecure, he wanted to prove that he was worth their time before meeting them. Last week he got a chance. In the aftermath of one of the triplets’ battles, he figured out how to reprogram a SWATbot Sonia had wrecked to think him its master and Robotnik’s forces enemies. He finished working on it it that day and unleashed it upon seeing the triplets in danger.

The triplets adopt him as their fourth sibling in their heads on the spot. Queen Aleena, who’s spent the day fighting through Robotnik’s forces to reach her children to comfort them and tell them that they haven’t lost everything, arrives shortly afterward and also internally adopts him as her fourth child within their first conversation, remembering his parents fondly. Miles nearly faints because the queen likes him.

The fugitive queen and her heirs can’t be in one place for long, and Robotnik gleefully interrupts the family bonding. A battle breaks out. Miles discovers his ability to fly in order to save Sonic’s life. Sonic starts calling him Tails, which delights him. Aleena even stays the night. It’s the best night Tails can remember; not a bad end to the anniversary of the worst day of the kingdom’s history. Before she reluctantly departs the next morning, she assures Tails he doesn’t need to earn his place in the family - he already has it.

The triplets shower Tails with lots of love and praise and encourage him to respect himself more, slowly building his confidence. They each know the agony it is to lose your parents, especially Sonic, and help him process it.

His relationship with Sonic is much the same as in the games.

He and Manic exchange street kid stories and deeply empathize with each other over the experiences they’ve shared that the others haven’t. Manic wants to mentor Tails in engineering, but the little prodigy is already his equal and even teaches him a few things. They also have flying races, comparing Manic’s hoverboard with Tails’s propulsion. Training and fun!

Sonia gushes about how adorable Tails’s soft, fluffy tails are when they first meet. She then regularly washes and brushes them and teaches him how to, since she’s the only sibling with any idea of thorough fur care. She even gives him decorations for them (primarily blue to match his eyes). He loves this. He’d often been told that his mutation made him an unlovable freak, and coming to consider it beautiful is a different kind of self-esteem to just realizing it can be useful. Her advanced education, unique among the triplets, lets her have more intellectual conversations with him too.

Due to his love of technology; head for plans, details and precision; and supportiveness of his older siblings, he frequently finds himself managing the logistics of the Sonic Underground’s performances, especially electronic elements like lighting design and sound system configuration and operation. His mindful personality makes him great at it, and he’s just fine not being in the spotlight. Soon theatrical technician is his official role in the band.

He bonds with Cyrus over their common interest in science. They can talk technobabble and work on some machine or software together for hours.

He had never left the inner city before he started travelling with the Resistance, so experiencing the wonders of nature fills him with awe. He is afraid of thunder and lightning, though.

He diligently keeps a multimedia log of his time in the Resistance on the Miles Electric, in the hopes that when his parents are themselves again he can tell and show them what he’s been up to and accomplished in their absences.

He eventually invents the deroboticizer, which hugely hastens Robotnik's overthrow. Aleena gives him a special medal for it. He's as humble as ever and doesn't wear the medal in public, instead framing it in his new bedroom in the palace, but everyone else is more than happy to brag about his accomplishments on his behalf. Especially Amadeus and Rosemary. Who also catch up with him on all their missed quality time, and hugs.

[mobiusxyearslater]

Rekindling (A Sonally Story)

A/N: This whole thing takes place about two years before the whole AU/Your Dork starts off for context. ~Mun @t-vict101

On a cool night in New Mobotropolis, Princess Sally Acorn is walking back to her cottage from the Tommy Turtle Memorial Hospital. She witnessed her friend, Bunnie Rabbot give birth to her firstborn daughter Annabelle. The whirlwind excitement and joy practically drained Sally’s energy, it was time for much-needed rest. She quietly walked along the dirt path still thinking about her new niece, how cute she looked, and how happy Bunnie and Antoine looked. That’s the kind of love that could last lifetimes. Sally starts to wonder if she could feel that way someday. Well, she did at one point, the only person she felt happy with was-- 

“Hey there Princess! You’re out late!” Sally heard a voice pipe up.

She looked forward to see the source of the cheery voice, well who else could it be? The one and only hero of Mobius, Sonic the Hedgehog, sat there on her porch giving her a soft wave. Sally stared at him for a few moments unsure of what to do. The last time she saw him he was off fighting Doctor Eggman and saving the world once again. That was almost half a year ago. But that was how Sonic was. There was no tying him down after the job was done which led to their romantic relationship being more on and off if anything. 

The ironic part was that their last break-up wasn’t because Sonic wasn’t around. It was because Sally was too busy juggling her life between her duties on the council and her duties as leader. Sonic did confront her about it which led to a big fight then eventually they agreed to go their separate ways. There was a twinge of guilt in Sally’s heart because of that and seeing Sonic there acting as if nothing happened. All Sally could do is muster up a small chuckle as she looks at the blue blur.

“Well, you know me. I’m always busy with one thing or another.” she joked as she took a seat next to Sonic, who gave her a chuckle. 

“Oh, boy don’t I know it! So what was it this time?” He playfully props his chin in his palm, “Council meetings? Ribbon cutting? Oh! A big speech in front of the entire kingdom?”

Sally gives him a small nudge and shakes her head, “Oh shut up. If you have to know, Bunnie and Antoine just had their baby tonight..”

“What??” Sonic perks up, “Those two have a kid now? Man. I feel like I miss out on a lot.”

Sally chuckles and shakes head, “Well that’s what happens when you’re gone for months on end.”

Sonic chuckles and scratches his head, “Heh. Well, I do come back once in a while though so it’s not all bad.

Sally let out a small chuckle and nod looking out to the moon, “Yeah.. I guess so.”

The two sit in silence just watching the moon. There was a feeling that someone should say something but neither of them did instead soaking in the atmosphere. Somehow, someway, the silence was relaxing for them both. No one brought up the past or having to suffer the awkwardness of reliving the whole thing over again. But there was one burning question that rattled in Sally’s head. Of all places to go in the middle of the night, why hers? Sonic still had his parents, his Uncle Chuck, heck he could just crash at Tails’ place if he really wanted to. 

Sally cleared her throat, making Sonic’s ear twitch. “So, you just randomly decided to pop up here?”

Sonic sweats a bit and gives off a nervous chuckle, “I guess I made it too obvious huh?” He looked at her shrugs, “...I guess I just missed you.”

Sally quirks a brow tilting her head, “Is that right?”

Sonic huffs at her tone and tilts his head, “What’s with that tone? I really did miss you.”

Sally chuckles and pats his head, sighing out tiredly, “And I missed you too.”

Still unable to get a read of what she’s thinking, Sonic wags at her at a finger, “...Why do I feel there’s a huge BUT coming up.”

Sally frowns and sighs out, “But… This feels like a pattern..” 

Sonic gives her a confused look, “What do you mean..?”

Through her tiredness she starts to pet through the blue hedgehog’s quills, “...This. Us. You leave for a long time then come back saying you missed me. Old feelings come up and we try again. Then…”

Sonic watched Sally as her words tiredly trailed and looked down to the ground. He always loved Sally, that fact is the solid truth, but being committed was a whole different ball game. Thinking about her words more, he started to see the pattern too. Sure his feelings were genuine at the moment but he’s always changing his mind about them. He started to think that maybe Sally wanted more than just part of him. Maybe she needed all of him, just like he wanted all of her. Maybe just maybe, him leaving for months after each attack isn’t fair to her at all. 

Sonic huffs out a chuckle and slides his hands behind his head, “...You wanna hear something funny?”

Sally rubs the tired out of her eyes and looks at him, “What’s that..?”

Sonic rubs his nose a bit, “While I was gone I actually dated someone for a small while.”

All Sally could do is huff in response, “So you can here in the middle of the night to tell me about your exes to your ex?”

Sonic nudges her a bit, “Just listen for sec. While I was away, I actually dated Amy for a small bit.”

Sally’s brows perk up hearing the news, “Wow. You actually let up and let her catch you huh?”

Sonic shrugs letting a small chuckle, “I did. I was always running and she was always there. I figured that was something I wanted or something. At least I thought I did.”

His words slowly trailed off as he thought about his time with Amy. The pink hedgehog sure was a spitfire. Wherever Sonic went she gladly went along with him for support. He figured giving her one date wouldn’t hurt. Then it turned into two. Then it turned to something exclusive. Their honeymoon phase was sweet but soon after Amy found herself in a bit of a rut. Hopping from city to city, fighting badniks left and right, she was all in on that no doubt but she wanted something more. At first, she thought Sonic was that solution, but when she had him that feeling never really went away.

Sonic sighs out softly circling his thumb in his palm. “So she dumped me. She said something about traveling around to find her purpose or something.”

Sally stared at the dejected hedgehog and softly petted his head, “You’re number one fan dumped you. That must’ve been a blow to the ol’ ego of yours.”

Sonic stifles a small chuckle letting himself relax under Sally’s touch, “Yeah it was but I get it.  It was fine for a while but I guess somewhere down the line. She realized I couldn’t give HER what SHE needed.” He lets out a sigh and looks up at the sky, “...I am proud of her though. Whatever she decides on doing for herself, she’ll be great at it.”

Sally nods in agreement and lets out a small yawn, “Yeah. She’s too determined to let herself fail at anything that’s for sure. She’ll probably be the best.”

Sonic shakes his head and looks at Sally, “Alright, enough about my dating life. What about you? Anyone in your life?”

Sally huffs out a chuckle and shakes her head, “Not really. There have been dates here and there but my busy schedule made it way too difficult to really settle into anything.” 

Sonic snickers a bit, “Woo boy don’t I know it--” he stops himself when he watches Sally’s face slowly fall into a frown, “Come on Sal. I don’t blame you for your hectic schedule.”

Sally gives him a look and crosses her arms, “Isn’t that the reason you dumped me the last time?” 

And there it was. That sting of awkwardness they worked so hard to avoid has finally come to the forefront. The silence draped over them as they sat there with their thoughts. No one knew what exactly to say at that moment. Sally realized she still had her hand on Sonic’s head and quickly pulled away looking away.

Sonic took a deep breath, “I know I gave you grief about it before. I just thought we could be how we used to be when we were 17.” Sally opened her mouth to say something but Sonic held up his hand. “Which I realized now… It can never be like that. I guess… I was…. I dunno.. Anxious about everything changing. You and Rotor on the council, Bunnie and Ant having a kid, Tails being the next inventor of the century, even Amy…” He takes a deep breath and kicks the dirt a bit, “...Seems like everyone is running this race and I'm dead last.”

Sally hums a bit pondering about his words, “...I guess… You’re feeling everyone is outgrowing you…?”

Sonic’s ear twitches and lets out a small pout leaning his chin in his palm, “....Maybe yeah…”

Sally lets out a small laugh and Sonic gives her a pouty look. She nudges him playfully, “Oh stop. I’m laughing because you’re the hero of Mobius. Everyone loves talking about you and practically wants to BE you.”

Sonic huffs out and crosses his arms, “I KNOW! I know I just… feel like I can do… more… Like I could do more for the world, my family, our friends, even you--” 

Sally’s brows perk up at the last part Sonic started to say but cut himself off. It was kinda strange seeing him so vulnerable. Usually, he had a real cocky attitude with everyone and was the brightest in the room. Honestly, this was a side of him that she tried to bring out a lot of the time but he would always brush it off like it was nothing. He seemed almost embarrassed that he was saying all of this out in the open, especially saying it to her.

She softly puts a hand on his shoulder, “...Hey. It’s normal to feel that way. Almost everyone feels that way sometime or another, right?”

Sonic sighs out and looks at her, “Yeah but it’s ME we’re talking about.”

Sally huffs and stands up, “Yeah and I know you better than you think. You’re a guy who takes action. You’re always putting others first before yourself. You’re a hero that inspires everyone to be the best versions of themselves.” She holds out a hand to him, “...Now are you going to stop moping and do something about it?”

Sonic stares at her hand remembering those were the words he said to her years before. He huffs out a chuckle before grasping onto her hand and standing up, “You got me there. And you’re right, like always.”

Sally chuckles and shakes her head, “Of course I am. I’ve known you way too long to be wrong.” 

Sonic chuckles a bit and watches her make her way up to her front door. He leans on the porch rail and tilts his head, “So I’m guessing I shouldn’t keep you from your beauty sleep any longer huh princess?”

Sally chuckles and shakes her head turning back to him, “Well that all depends if you’re going to keep me up all night.” She opens the door and gestures inside.

Sonic gives off a snarky chuckle as he walks up the steps stopping in front of her, “Oh ho ho! And what exactly do you mean by that princess?”

Sally rolls her eyes and pushes him inside of the cottage, “I mean you’re sleeping on the couch!”

Sonic pouts and leans back in her hands, “Aw but I could really use a nice big warm bed after months without one!”

Sally shakes her head, “You should’ve gone to your parents then.” She lets out a soft chuckle before shutting the door behind her, “You big dork.”

END

[whatudottu]

So I’m sure y’all (ben 10 fans specifically) know about the episode Inspector 13? And how Gwen couldn’t used her mana like she usually does?

Yeah, those are my thoughts today and I’m gonna talk about ‘em.

Let’s get this out of the way first, pure full Anodites will not have the same trouble that Gwen has, regardless of form. Basic reason here same as normal, they’re pure mana and Gwen is a fleshy human with a spark, so inherently there’s already a difference in the flow of mana.

But are other species capable of magic and mana manipulation?

Heck yeah!

Knowing what we’ve seen with Anodites already, sans Gwen of course, they’re the... uh... hmm let’s say playboys of the universe. Much in the same way that humans can’t keep it in their pants, Anodites don’t have pants in the first place and would definitely proliferate with life spanning galaxies. And just like with humans, there is a chance that any hybrid child of an Anodite can have the spark.

But does that mean that Gwen can use mana as each of the aliens she turns into?

Heck no!

At least not on first try.

Now let me explain. Humans have a filter on their flow of mana, one which Anodites don’t possess, but other species have that same filter. Why? Well, it’s their DNA of course, it’s what separates them from the pure energy beings of Anodites, the unfiltered raw flow of mana. This filter is there because while Anodites are filled with mana, a hybrid with a spark produces their own unique life energy that interacts and mingles with the flow of their mana.

But what does that mean for Gwen?

Given that the spark is not... uh... entirely genetic (there’s a need for an Anodite SOMEWHERE in the bloodline for the spark, but it doesn’t come up in DNA), it should exist through each transformation. But the issue here is that, while the spark stays the same, the filter wildly changes.

Gwen, as herself, is athletic and light on her feet, so her mana floats, twists and turns, and when solid, is akin to glass. But as Diamondhead, suddenly there’s more weight and less dexterity. There’s a difference that opens a new set of rules for Gwen that she’s never had to deal with, and just like at the start of her magic career, things don’t work exactly as they should.

I’m done with the whole analysis side of this thought, but the main reason why this is on my mind is because... well... I didn’t like how the show handled the differences in mana manipulation. It’s maybe a sneaky little episode rewrite, and maybe a little more interesting version of the ‘getting-used-to-another-person’s-powers’ trope... which I’m pretty sure is a thing. I don’t know I’ve seen it before a few times so whatever.

ANYWAY! Moving on to what I would’ve like to have happened, let’s go in order of Gwen’s transformations.

As stated (and is obvious), Petrosapiens aren’t very known for their light weight and dexterity, so one’s magic would reflect this. How this will affect their mana would turn the free flowing looseness of floating mana into physics based materialisation. But what makes this different to a Petrosapien’s natural crystalkinesis?

Let’s demonstrate with Diamondhead.

A falling Gwen would realise quick that her attempts at making platforms would fail, seeing them fall alongside her. However, producing these solid objects took nothing away from her physical levels of energy, meaning Diamondhead wasn’t growing fatigued unlike with typical crystalkinesis. Gwen would have the ability to form as much ‘crystals’ as she wants in order to keep her from crashing too heavily into the ground.

This use of mana is more so built upon traps, because they last a lot longer and barely need concentration to work. Used as a replacement for crystalkinesis, a Petrosapien ain’t gonna get very far, because these ‘traps’ work on everyone even if they can disperse the constructs. No, it’s better to stay away from the constructs because they amplify sonic waves (the mana vibrates as if like a tuning fork) and can create shatter explosions if struck the right way. For the latter, if y’all have seen the dude pressure plating a diamond, it’s like that.

Now, let’s talk about the second alien Gwen transforms into, Clockwork!

Chronosapiens are a little more robotic than Humans and Petrosapiens, especially Anodites, so their filter of mana is a lot larger. It is the fact that they are alive in the first place that let’s them use magic at all, but their mana capabilities are extremely limited. It’s like being trapped in a metal suit, where it’s hard to allow the internal spark to manipulate the external environment. But what if one doesn’t use external magic?

Clockwork can work like this.

Gwen may not manage to bypass the filter and create mana constructs, or even a flowing tendril, but she can find ways for her modified magic to work. Clockwork keeps the spark internally, so why not help that along with less offensive and defensive skills, and instead more utility casting. What does this mean? Flight, babes! But instead of the traditional sort of flight, Gwen finds that she can ‘walk on frozen time’ and ‘slip through the seems’.

Okay maybe that sounds a little too much like the Esoterica power set, but it’s not like seeing a fourth dimension and accessing the inaccessible. It may appear to be the same, but just like how people may perceive Clockwork to have super speed, even though he’s just slowed time for everyone else, it’s just a matter of perspective. But in general, learning to use mana outwardly would need more time than Gwen had.

Moving on to alien number 3, we have Humungousaur.

Now, in terms of filters, Vaxasaurians have a little more access to mana manipulation than Petrosapiens and especially Chronosapiens, but they have a whole lot of life energy due to their size, which has an effect on their spark. While the dexterity of their magic can be comparable to Human’s manipulation, the strength of it is quite limited, so while a Vaxasaurian may be dependent on their physical bodies for attack and defence, magic is just a bonus action.

So how would Humungousaur use magic instead?

Well, while Gwen would engage in a good old round of fisticuffs, she can use mana like a lasso/whip to trip opponents and yank them this way and that. And by ‘this way’ I mean directly into her punch, like you’re the ball of a paddle-board. It’s definitely more of an assistance type of magic, and it’s definitely not strong enough to support the weight of Humungousaur, but Gwen can control the battlefield by controlling the stability of the enemy.

Think hunting and gathering, this is where a Vaxasaurian’s magic thrives, where it helps with restraining and retrieval rather than attack and defence, they’ve already got THAT down. Prime Vaxasaurians, with their size increase, would lose the use of their mana when at max height, but Reboot Vaxasaurians can emphasise their tail shockwave with magic to make it even more deadly.

Up next is Upchuck, and boy is this an easy one.

Gourmands already have a natural relationship between themselves and energy, so someone with the spark can super enhance their energy bile. To the point where it’s almost unnecessary to actually eat anything to get at least some sort of fire power. Of course, with a Gourmand’s small squishy body, they are perfectly capable of throwing up defences (I swear that pun was an accident), but who needs defences when you’ve got a whole arsenal of explosive mana.

But there’s a little issue with Upchuck that Gwen has to get over.

The problem? Gwen’s a little self-conscious about a Gourmand’s abilities. Mana is the flow of life energy, so if the flow is restrained by embarrassment, it doesn’t act at its full potential. Upchuck can certainly try to use magic as a crutch to avoid needing to eat and spit her way in, but the free flowing stream cutting off is inhibiting the strength of her defence too.

SO! When Gwen finally caves and eats some metal, there’s enough power to blast a hole into the techadon factory big enough to get inside with time to spare. Aside from enhancing the blasting power of a Gourmand’s natural energy, the use of mana manipulation can change the ‘weaponry’ of the attack, which can turn into a gassy smokescreen (burp) and a sticky ball (loogie) to name a few. A Gourmand’s best strength is confidence, so Gwen would need to adapt her mana the same way.

And last but not least, we have Rath stepping up to the plate.

Now, Appoplexians are... rather straight forward and fight tooth and claw rather than strategically. They have a similar mana to life energy filter ratio to Humans, but that doesn’t mean that they’re just as magic friendly. Mana manipulation typically requires coherent thought other than the urge to beat someone up.

But Rath can use magic, and here’s how Gwen works it.

Cutting to the chase, there’s no range mana attacks, at all. For one thing, Rath would find it cowardly, another being that unlike ripping out a turret and throwing it at something else, there’s not enough brutal violence. And utility magic is not even considered. That needs some planning, and the only plan Rath has going into the fight is to WIN! And Gwen is not immune to the urge for violence.

So what happens instead, Gwen would accentuate a punch, slash or block with the extra kick of mana. Enemy fist approaching at 5 o’clock, t-minus 2 seconds? Mana armour. The techadon warrior is regenerating a little too fast for liking? Mana blade! Inspector 13 is being an annoying little techadon engineer with his constant downplay of their abilities? MANA PUNCH!

And after all that, Gwen gets to be in her own skin again. Some of the abilities she learnt that day don’t translate to her Human form. She can’t form crystal traps, she can’t slip between the seams of time, she can’t modify the properties of her mana. But some of the techniques she learnt can be adapted into her regular fighting. She can manipulate the battle field, she can construct armour on the fly.

But most importantly, she can see the differences of life energy, and how they effect magic use. Seeing a range of different mana manipulation, Gwen has unlocked a more open perspective on magic and can learn so much more, her expectations of Human magic pried open wide.

I think THAT would’ve been neat.

But instead we got same face syndrome not to rag on the episode haha.

[britesparc]

Weekend Top Ten #482

Top Ten Sega Games

So I read somewhere on the internet that in June it’s the thirtieth birthday of Sonic the Hedgehog (making him only a couple of months younger than my brother, which is weird). This is due to his debut game, the appropriately-titled Sonic the Hedgehog, being first released on June 23rd. As such – and because I do love a good Tenuous Link – I’ve decided to dedicate this week’s list to Sega (also there was that Sonic livestream and announcement of new games, so I remain shockingly relevant).

I’ve got a funny relationship with Sega, largely because I’ve got a funny relationship with last century’s consoles in general. As I’ve said before, I never had a console growing up, and never really felt the need for one; I came from a computing background, playing on other people’s Spectrums and Commodores before getting my own Amiga and, later, a PC. And I stuck with it, and that was fine. But it does mean that, generally speaking, I have next to zero nostalgia for any game that came out on a Nintendo or Sega console (or Sony, for that matter). I could chew your ear off about Dizzy, or point-and-click adventure games, or Team 17, or Sensible Software, or RTS games, or FPS games, or whatever; but all these weird-looking Japanese platform games, or strange, unfamiliar RPGs? No idea. In fact, I remember learning what “Metroidvania” meant about five years ago, and literally saying out loud, “oh, so it’s like Flashback, then,” because I’d never played a (2D) Metroid or Castlevania game. Turns out they meant games that were, using the old Amiga Action terminology, “Arcade Adventures”. Now it makes sense.

Despite all this, I did actually play a fair few Sega games, as my cousins had a Mega Drive. So I’d get to have a bash at a fair few of them after school or whatever. This meant that, for a while, I was actually more of a Sega fan than a Nintendo one, a situation that’s broadly flipped since Sega stopped making hardware and Nintendo continued its gaming dominance. What all of this means, when strung together, is that I have a good deal of affection for some of the classics of Sega’s 16-bit heyday, but I don’t have the breadth or depth of knowledge you’d see from someone who, well, actually owned a console before the original Xbox. Yeah, sure, there are lots of games I liked back then; and probably quite a few that I still have warm nostalgic feelings for, even if they’re maybe not actually very good (Altered Beast, for instance, which I’m reliably informed was – to coin a very early-nineties phrase – “pants”, despite my being fond of it at the time). Therefore this list is probably going to be quite eccentric when compared to other “Best of Sega” lists. Especially because in the last couple of decades Sega has become a publisher for a number of development studios all around the world, giving support and distribution to the makers of diverse (and historically non-console) franchises as Total War and Football Manager. These might not be the fast-moving blue sky games one associates with Sega, but as far as I’m concerned they’re a vital part of the company’s history as it moved away from its hardware failures (and the increasingly lacklustre Sonic franchise) and into new waters. And just as important, of course, are their arcade releases, back in the days when people actually went to arcades (you know, I have multi-format games magazines at my parents’ house that are so old they actually review arcade games. Yes, I know!).

So, happy birthday, Sonic, you big blue bugger, you. Sorry your company pooed itself on the home console front. Sorry a lot of your games over the past twenty years have been a bit disappointing. But in a funny way you helped define the nineties, something that I personally don’t feel Mario quite did. And your film is better than his, too.

Crazy Taxi (Arcade, 1999): a simple concept – drive customers to their destination in the time limit – combined with a beautiful, sunny, blue skied rendition of San Francisco, giving you a gorgeous cityscape (back when driving round an open city was a new thrill), filled with hills to bounce over and traffic to dodge. A real looker twenty years ago, but its stylised, simple graphics haven’t really dated, feeling fittingly retro rather than old-fashioned or clunky. One of those games that’s fiendishly difficult to master, but its central hook is so compelling you keep coming back for more.

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Mega Drive, 1992): games have rarely felt faster, and even if the original Sonic’s opening stages are more iconic, overall I prefer the sequel. Sonic himself was one of those very-nineties characters who focused on a gentle, child-friendly form of “attitude”, and it bursts off the screen, his frown and impatient foot-tapping really selling it. the gameplay is sublime, the graphics still really pop, and the more complex stages contrast nicely with the pastoral opening. Plus it gave us Tails, the game industry’s own Jar Jar Binks, who I’ll always love because my cousin made me play as him all the time.

Medieval II: Total War (PC, 2006): I’ll be honest with you, this game is really the number one, I just feel weird listing “Best Sega Games” and then putting a fifteen-year-old PC strategy game at the top of the pile. But what can I say? I like turn-based PC strategy games, especially ones that let you go deep on genealogy and inter-familial relationships in medieval Europe. everyone knows the real-time 3D battles are cool – they made a whole TV show about them – but for me it’s the slow conquering of Europe that’s the highlight. Marrying off princesses, assassinating rivals, even going on ethically-dubious religious crusades… I just love it. I’ve not played many of the subsequent games in the franchise, but to be honest I like this setting so much I really just want them to make a third Medieval game.

Sega Rally Championship (Arcade, 1994): what, four games in and we’re back to racing? Well, Sega make good racing games I guess. And Sega Rally is just a really good racing game. Another one of those that was a graphical marvel on its release, it has a loose and freewheeling sense of fun and accessibility. Plus it was one of those games that revelled in its open blue skies, from an era when racing games in the arcades loved to dazzle you with spectacle – like when a helicopter swoops low over the tracks. I had a demo of this on PC, too, and I used to race that one course over and over again.

After Burner (Arcade, 1987): there are a lot of arcade games in this list, but when they’re as cool as After Burner, what can you do? This was a technological masterpiece back in the day: a huge cockpit that enveloped you as you sat in the pilot’s seat, joystick in hand. The whole rig moved as you flew the plane, and the graphics (gorgeous for their time) wowed you with their speed and the way the horizon shifted. I was, of course, utterly crap at it, and I seem to remember it was more expensive than most games, so my dad hated me going on it. But it was the kind of thrilling experience that seems harder to replicate nowadays.

Virtua Cop (Arcade, 1994): I used to love lightgun games in the nineties. This despite being utterly, ridiculously crap at them. I can’t aim; ask anyone. But they felt really cool and futuristic, and also you could wave a big gun around like you were RoboCop or something. Virtua Cop added to the fun with its cool 3D graphics. Whilst I’d argue Time Crisis was better, with a little paddle that let you take cover, Cop again leveraged those bright Sega colours to give us a beautiful primary-coloured depiction of excessive ultra-violence and mass death.

Two Point Hospital (PC, 2018): back once again to the point-and-clickers, with another PC game only nominally Sega. But I can’t ignore it. Taking what was best about Theme Hospital and updating it for the 21st Century, TPH is a darkly funny but enjoyably deep management sim, with cute chunky graphics and an easy-to-use interface (Daughter #1 is very fond of it). The console adaptations are good, too. I’d love to see where Two Point go next. Maybe to a theme park…?

Jet Set Radio Future (Xbox, 2002): I never had a Dreamcast. But I remember seeing the original Jet Set Radio – maybe on TV, maybe running on a demo pod in Toys ‘R’ Us or something – and being blown away. It was the first time I’d ever seen cel shading, and it was a revelation; just a beautiful technique that I didn’t think was possible, that made the game look like a living cartoon. Finally being able to play the sequel on my new Xbox was terrific, because the gameplay was excellent too: a fast-paced game of chaining together jumps and glides, in a city that was popping with colour and bursting with energy. Felt like playing a game made entirely of Skittles and Red Bull.

The Typing of the Dead (PC, 2000): The House of the Dead games were descendants of Virtua Cop’s lightgun blasting, but with zombies. Yeah, cool; I liked playing them at the arcades down at Teesside Park, in the Hollywood Bowl or the Showcase cinema. But playing this PC adaptation of the quirky typing-based spin-off was something else. A game where you defeat zombies by correctly typing “cow” or “bottle” or whatever as quickly as possible? A game that was simultaneously an educational typing instructor and also a zombie murder simulator? The fact that the characters are wearing Ghostbusters-style backpacks made of Dreamcast consoles and keyboards is just a seriously crazy detail, and the way the typing was integrated into the gameplay – harder enemies had longer words, for instance – was very well done. A bonkers mini-masterpiece.

Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 (Switch, 2019): the very fact that erstwhile cultural enemies Mario and Sonic would ever share a game at all is the stuff of addled mid-nineties fever dreams; like Downey’s Tony Stark sharing the screen with Bale’s Batman (or Affleck’s Batman, who the hell cares at this point). The main thing is, it’s still crazy to think about it, even if it’s just entirely ordinary for my kids, sitting their unaware of the Great Console Wars of the 1990s. Anyway, divorced of all that pan-universal gladhanding, the games are good fun, adapting the various Olympic sports with charm, making them easy-to-understand party games, often with motion control for the benefit of the youngs and the olds. I don’t remember playing earlier games extensively, but the soft-RPG trappings of the latest iteration are enjoyable, especially the retro-themed events and graphics. Earns a spot in my Top Ten for its historic nature, but it’s also thoroughly enjoyable in its own right.

Hey, wouldn’t it be funny if all those crazy internet rumours were actually true, and Microsoft did announce it was buying Sega this E3? This really would feel like a very timely and in some ways prescient list.

[eat-the-richard]

Sonic’s 30th: What it could be and what it won’t be

Well folks, it's about that time again. Our beloved Sonic thee Hedgehog is turning the big three-oh this year.

I say that time “again” because, y’know, it seems like we just went through this. The last mainline Sonic releases, Sonic Mania and Sonic Forces, were both revealed as part of Sonic’s 25th anniversary. In a sense, that’s all us fans really have to look forward to anymore. Waiting for about five-or-so rotations around the sun to pass until SEGA can slap that big number next to Sonic’s mug to usher out as much celebratory marketing material as they can, all for the chance to get a smidgen of new video games to get our hands on.

This anniversary feels... different, though. Last anniversary SEGA had an absolute winner on their hands in Sonic Mania. There was no way the team behind that one could possibly mess up. And even if Sonic Forces turned out like... that, it at least made sense from SEGA’s perspective to greenlight a game like it during that time. But the five years since those games were announced have done little to assuage my worries about what exactly is planned for this year’s big game.

You see, Sonic has kind of vanished. He’s lost. M.I.A.. Which feels strange. Even during the supposed “dark age” of Sonic, he never really went anywhere. New games were still being produced like clockwork for a whole host of gaming systems. From mainline titles to spinoffs, dedicated Sonic fans had a lot to sink their teeth into back then. Since the release of Forces, all we really have to show for ourselves is a (personally) insignificant expansion to Sonic Mania and a new racing title which, frankly, didn’t set the world on fire when it was released. I suppose there’s a whole host of mobile titles that I didn’t mention but it’s difficult to get excited over yet another Sonic auto-runner. Perhaps most bafflingly, there haven’t even been many ports of older Sonic titles to modern hardware. If the mid-2000s were the dark ages of Sonic, perhaps right now we’re living in the “silent age,” where basically nothing is even happening and the franchise is at an eternal standstill.

The sole exception to this self-titled silent era was the Sonic movie, which I don’t think anyone anticipated being as big of a success as it was. Including the studio behind it. And especially including SEGA. It was utterly baffling to me that, upon the film’s release, there was nothing in the way of a tie-in game. Nothing directly associated with the movie. Nothing separate to release alongside the movie. Nothing. Some have speculated that SEGA was supremely unconfident in the film and it's hard to argue otherwise. It seems that, in a sense, the movie was a success in spite of the company the IP is linked with.

That’s why this anniversary feels more peculiar than the last one. At least Sonic was doing something in the early 2010s. Perhaps nothing groundbreaking, but he was at least around. If it hadn’t been for the movie, how in the world would the series be attracting new fans? This anniversary needs to be big. It needs to be the explosive re-emergence of Sonic to not only please the jaded oldies but the next generation of kids. And… I just don’t anticipate anything of the sort.

To me, Sonic Team has about four directions they could take the 30th anniversary game. Here they are, listed in descending order of likelihood.

4. A new “boost” game. Sonic Team ain’t opening that can of worms again.

3. A new “classic Sonic” game. While Christian Whitehead’s new studio has been deafeningly silent since forming, I believe that we’d have a bit more information about a Sonic Mania sequel by now if that was indeed in development.

2. Something entirely different.

1. Sonic Adventure 3 (or comparable analog).

Now, your reaction to that list may differ depending on your preferences and the year you were born. To me, something evoking nostalgia to the two Sonic Adventures is the safest and most likely choice for SEGA and Sonic Team. Just as classic nostalgia permeated through the 2010s, Adventure nostalgia will trailblaze full force through the 2020s. There are a lot of people whose only exposure to Sonic at all is playing Sonic Adventure 2 Battle on their GameCube. And the only way those people could potentially get funneled back into the series is through a proper Sonic Adventure 3, or at least something like it.

This, of course, says nothing about the overall quality of what this new Adventure title would be. And really, this is my main concern with the 30th anniversary. Can I even trust Sonic Team anymore to put out a good game?

Regardless of style, I’m unconfident to say the least. The staff that worked on the Adventure titles are not at SEGA anymore. The staff that spearheaded the “boost trilogy” of Unleashed, Colors, and Generations are not at SEGA anymore. And modern-day Sonic Team’s idea of something entirely different is, well, unappealing. Sonic Lost World proved that trying to change the core of the series for its own sake leads to a bland and uninspiring experience. And Forces? Oh… Forces.

Really, Forces is the main reason why I’m so disillusioned. Maybe it was that I was excited for the grand return of the boost. Maybe it was that I loved Generations so much that a proper sequel to it couldn’t possibly be bad. Instead of being a sequel to Generations, though, it tries to be everything at once. A game to appeal to the classic fans, the Adventure fans, the boost fans, those whole love complicated narratives, those who love the many characters this series has, and, obviously, the Original Character Artists™. Jack of all trades, master of nothing. A directionless, soulless game that in some instances is seemingly artificially-generated.

If this spectacular 30th anniversary Sonic game is something entirely different, it had to break an astounding amount of new ground. It had to rethink and reshape the series so drastically that, honestly, I don’t think it's very likely. I don’t think Sonic Team has even the slightest clue about what makes their flagship IP so appealing to so many people. If the nostalgia-fueled 2010s are any indication, SEGA only understands what makes Sonic so popular on a superficial level. 

They know we liked the 2D games, so now EVERY game has 2D in it! Oh, they didn’t like that Sonic has green eyes. Well, let’s bring back the CLASSIC version of Sonic. Let’s actually make him his own character who will also appear in every game! 

New zone ideas? LMAO how about we reuse the same set of classic levels over and over! Green Hill? YES! Chemical Plant? Of course! Let’s make an entire game that has both Sonics running around in a bunch of old zones. Wait, didn’t we just do that idea last year for Sonic 4 Episode 1? And aren’t we going to do that idea NEXT year for Sonic 4 Episode 2? WAIT DID SOMEONE SAY CHECKERBOARD PATTERNS IN WINDY HILL ZONE!???!!!! 

Oh wait, Christian Whitehead just pitched to us a brand new 2D Sonic game with classic physics and new levels? We’ll let him do it, but ONLY if it is ANOTHER nostalgia game that reuses old zones! 

Let’s inundate our fans with the same images of their childhood to activate their dopamine receptors! 

I can hardly wait for what this team’s idea of Sonic Adventure nostalgia looks like. Hope you really like City Escape.

Really, while such appeals to nostalgia are welcome the first few times, after a while it starts to get grating. Sonic Team leaning so hard into it during the 2010s reeks to me of desperation. As if the constant callbacks are the only thing the team knows how to do to link new games with the rest of the series. 

In actuality, fans don’t like Sonic because of the classic design or 2D-platforming or Green Hill Zone. They may like those things, but it isn’t why they continue to support the series. Fans love Sonic so fervently because, when he hits on all cylinders, he really hits. His games play in a supremely rewarding way where skill mastery is key. The better you are at Sonic, the better you feel while playing it. The personalities and designs of all of the different characters, from Sonic to Tails to Vector the freakin’ Crocodile, are not only distinct from each other but bleed through into gameplay in the way that they control and in how they are animated. Sonic’s best stories are ones that people can really relate to, dealing with a whole host of themes such as environmentalism, resisting fascism, surpassing expectations, and even the concept of free will among nonhuman entities. Not especially deep, but certainly thought provoking, especially for kids. All tied together with top notch visual and audio design that will stand the test of time. I’d posit that, while people like Sonic for a whole host of reasons, their starting point lies somewhere in the above explanation.

Hopefully, Sonic Team has realized by now that nostalgia will only get them so far. While a Sonic Adventure 3 would turn heads, it wouldn’t push the series forward. While a proper sequel to Sonic Mania would be a critical darling, it would continue to keep Sonic’s feet firmly planted in 1991. Sonic needs to evolve. He needs to change. And it seems like a change is happening. Roger Craig Smith, the voice of Sonic for the last 10 years, is no longer working with the series. The new TV series, Sonic Prime, is set to take place in a “strange new multiverse.” Even the Sonic movie refuses to lean on nostalgia too hard. 

So maybe the future will be set in unfamiliar waters. But if this is the case, I don’t want SEGA to half ass it. I want them to boldly step into that abyss with a vision of Sonic that appeals to the heart of the fandom. Because, even if it's been down recently, that heart is still beating, and after the abuse it's already taken, it’s going to take a hell of a lot to get it to stop. And if SEGA can get this heart pumping to its full extreme as it had in years past, we may have something legendary to look forward to.

They could also just release a bunch of old Sonic games on Switch. I’d like that too.

[bltngames]

SAGE 2020: Fan Games

I’d hoped to have this article out a little bit sooner, but I overestimated how long it would take to write about some of these games. Whoops! Like I said when I outlined the posting “schedule” on the first day, we’re playing it fast and loose, so this is just what you get.

Today is the day I talk about fan games! And even though SAGE has “Sonic” right there in the acronym, it’s always hosted fan games from all types, so today we’ve got Mega Man, Mario, Rayman, and even fan games of fan games, if you can believe it.

Sonic Pinball Panic!

Pinball is one of those things where I’ve always been obsessed with it, but never very good at it. And now, with access to digital pinball collections like Pinball Arcade and Pinball FX, I don’t actually find myself playing as much pinball as I thought I would when I was 14 years old. Still, I find myself fascinated by a good pinball table, and this honestly caught me off guard. This could very easily be an official DLC release for one of those aforementioned pinball collections and I wouldn’t even bat an eyelash (in fact, if you ask me, this is better than Pinball FX, which has always had weird ball physics). This looks, sounds, and functions exactly like a real pinball table should. My complaints are minor: for starters, the table feels kind of easy. I’ve never been a pinball wizard, but I was losing balls left and right here and it still took a good 15 minutes before I finally got a game over. Score accumulation is also pretty slow; most pinball tables will dump millions and millions of points on you, but here, it felt like a struggle just to reach the 379k I finished with. Both contribute to the fact that the table feels a little flat, like it’s missing a spark to really put it over the top. And, third, it would be nice if it had controller support. The keyboard works just fine, here (it’s just pinball, after all) but I find that the triggers on a controller feel really good with pinball flippers, and mapping the plunger to the right stick is great, too. This is a Unity game, so I wouldn’t think it’d be that hard to hook it up to the controller mapper. Still, I came away impressed.

Mega Man: Perfect Blue

There are two things out there that always give me pause: fan-made Doom level packs, and Mega Man fan games. Fan made gaming content generally has problems when it comes to difficulty balancing anyway, but these games have earned a certain reputation for their difficulty, which creates a problem when you have content made by fans, for fans. This insularity means these things are usually way too hard for what I would consider “normal” people (read: casual fans and outsiders). Add on to the fact that I’d even say that there are official Mega Man games with bad difficulty balancing, and you have a recipe for frustration. Sadly, this is how I’d characterize Perfect Blue: though this introductory level isn’t impossibly hard, it’s definitely pushing that edge where it’s not very accommodating to someone who hasn’t played and finished every Classic Mega Man game ever made. It almost immediately throws you into scenarios where you have jumps you can barely reach, insta-kill spikes, and enemies that not only actively dodge your shots, but invincible enemies that launch counter attack homing missiles. And then it starts making you juggle all of this stuff, together, at the same time. None of this is insurmountable as long as you’re paying attention, but as a very casual Mega Man fan, it’s an unfriendly first impression and makes me worried about what the rest of the game is going to be like as the challenge naturally ramps up. For those hardcore Mega Man fans among you, the rest of this is solid, at least. The presentation and controls are excellent, and the new sprites are beautiful. It’s a game I’d love to enjoy when it’s done… but I’m assuming I’ll be left out in the cold. A shame, really, because there’s so much promise here.

Sonic and the Mayhem Master

There’s a lot to like about this game, but there’s a part of me that really wonders if this should even be considered a Sonic fan game. Mayhem Master’s depictions of Sonic and Amy Rose are atypical to put it mildly. Here, Sonic seems to be a bookish nerd of sorts, a sidekick to Amy Rose, who has been turned into a burnt out, cigar-smoking detective. Most of the game plays out as half an adventure game, half an RPG, where you roam around the world talking to NPCs and gather clues while being assaulted by random battles. The battle system is super off-the-wall, too, perhaps taking inspirations from games like Mario & Luigi and Undertale. This means that battles aren’t passive -- you spend most of each fight dodging or nullifying incoming attacks with simplistic action-based commands. It’s weird, and different, and occasionally even a little bit overwhelming. That’s kind of the whole game, really. It’s the sort of thing that really doesn’t feel like a Sonic game at all, but it also doesn’t feel bad. The artwork is very charming, I’m interested in seeing the characters develop, and there’s plenty of worldbuilding and mystery. Would this still be as intriguing if you removed the Sonic connection, even if it’s so threadbare? That’s a hard question to answer. I know that some of my interest in this game is seeing how it spins more familiar Sonic elements into something that’s completely different. Worth checking out, for curiosity’s sake if nothing else.

Sonic and the Dreamcatcher

This is a fairly brilliant little game with two unfortunate quirks. If you didn’t know, the special stages in the original Sonic the Hedgehog were inspired by an arcade game of the era called Cameltry, published by Taito in 1989. Now, Sonic’s special stages were different enough from Cameltry that it wasn’t a case of Sega outright stealing the gameplay, but there’s a clear lineage there, and it only becomes clearer when you compare the special stages in Sonic 4 Episode 1 to Cameltry (spoilers: in that game, they’re nearly identical). Dreamcatcher is also from this lineage, but is infinitely more charming than either Sonic 4 and maybe even Cameltry itself. The idea is that you must collect a specific number of blue spheres in order to reveal the Chaos Emerald, after which you have a limited amount of time to find and collect it. It’s very simple, but the presentation really sells the game’s charm. It’s just a game that looks good and sounds good, with an interesting premise executed very well. Also, you get a dedicated “& Knuckles” button to spawn infinite Knuckles to help you collect blue spheres and bash enemies. Being able to have unlimited numbers of these guys sounds like it would break the game, but once that countdown clock begins, the last thing you need is 20+ echidnas clogging up the route back to the emerald. The first quirk this game suffers from is that there’s only two levels. Parts of this have a very “game jam made in a weekend” vibe to it despite the rock-solid music, sound, and gameplay, and only having two levels contributes to that. Hopefully more are coming in the future. The other quirk? You can’t actually download this game -- it’s embedded in a webpage. I’m sure this is to make it easy to play on any platform with a web browser (phones, PCs, etc.) but I find myself greatly desiring a hard copy of this game that can live on my computer forever.

Sonic Galactic

Now here’s just a good old fashioned Sonic fan game. Though it clearly takes inspiration from Sonic Mania’s aesthetics in some places, it’s clearly doing its own thing, featuring not just the core cast of Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles, but also Fang the Sniper, and even a brand new character named Tunnel the Mole. Unlike a lot of Sonic fan games at SAGE, this appears to be using something besides Clickteam Fusion, Game Maker, or Unity. Here, it’s the “Hatch Game Engine,” whatever that is. Whatever the case may be, the game runs very well and is basically indistinguishable from just playing Sonic Mania. Visuals are sharp, music’s good, the two included boss fights are surprisingly fun to fight -- everything seems to be in order. As a result, there’s not really a lot to say. This is just a good, fun game. Anything else I’d say would come off sounding like nitpicks. For example, there’s no way to set graphics options yet, so the game is stuck in 2x Windowed mode. Fang and Tunnel are cute additions, but I wonder how much utility they have as characters. Unless I missed something, Fang’s pop gun is mainly for a weak double-jump ability, and Tunnel’s ability to dig and ricochet off floors, walls and ceilings is cool, but it doesn’t have quite the universal utility of Tails’ flight or Knuckles climbing and gliding. It’ll be interesting to see how or maybe even if their abilities have a chance to grow into something special. Anyway, like I said, those are nitpicks, so try to give this a shot if you can.

Sonic Robo-Blast!

Remasters seem to be a bit of a theme this SAGE, between Sonic Triple Trouble 16-bit, Sonic 2 SMS, Sonic 1 Revisited, but this is perhaps the most surprising of them all: a loving remaster of the original Sonic Robo-Blast. SRB1 was perhaps one of the first true “landmark” fan games, given that it was basically a whole entire game that people could play. It's not a stretch to say that SRB1 probably helped kickstart the fan gaming community that still survives to this day -- I certainly owe my involvement in the community to seeing SRB1 for the first time. The problem is, as historically significant as the game might be, it’s nearly impossible to go back to nowadays -- it’s much, much too dated to be any fun. This remaster completely re-envisions SRB1 as a regular Sonic game, while also pulling in gameplay elements from Sonic Robo-Blast 2. It’s a bit of a time paradox mindwarp, but it helps give it a bit more personality than just making a bog-standard 2D Sonic. It works, aided by the fact the sprites, music and overall presentation are fantastic. The only downside is the Act 2 boss, which commits the cardinal sin of taking away player agency and making you wait around far too much. Here’s hoping this gets finished, because it’s definitely on my radar now.

Super Mario Flashback

This has been floating around for a few years now and I’m glad to see it’s finally starting to get some more substantial content as it moves towards becoming an actual game. That being said, this is also one of those games that’s kind of hard to talk about because it’s just… really polished. The art is incredible, it controls exactly like a Mario game, and there’s already a decent mixture of ideas at play in the demo. Anything else I’d say would sound like nitpicking -- like, for example, the backseat game designer in me wonders if maybe the game is prioritizing aesthetics a little too much. This is a wonderfully animated game, absolutely gorgeous, but some actions, like the butt-stomp and the wall kick, feel a bit sluggish, and I think it’s because they show off fancy animations. Even if it’s a split second, waiting for Mario to attach to a wall to kick off of it feels slow. Really, though, that’s an insignificant complaint. This demo is still well worth checking out.

Sonic Advance 4 Advanced

This game seems like a greatest-hits of Dimps best ideas, spanning the first Sonic Advance all the way to Sonic Rush. There’s just one problem: the game seems broken. Now, my desktop PC is starting to show its age. I built it four and a half years ago, and though it can handle game like Gears of War 5 on high settings at 60fps, slowly, newer games seem to be leaving it behind. That being said, I don’t think a game like Sonic Advance 4 here should be running at what appears to be half its intended speed. It also originally launched in a teeny-tiny window (we’re talking, like, smaller than a postage stamp) and even though the options menu has a toggle for full screen mode, it doesn’t want to work. Something about this game under the hood seems to be struggling very, very, VERY hard. It’s a shame, because if this actually played at the proper speed, it seems like it might actually be an alright game, if a bit complex and busy.

Sonic 2 SMS Remake

Here’s a game I was all buckled in expecting to enjoy. Like it says on the tin, this is a remake of Sonic 2 for the Master System (and Game Gear), but with wide screen visuals and huge expansions to the mechanics, roster of playable characters, and levels. On the outside it seems really impressive, and to a certain degree it is, but something about the controls feel a little off. Sonic’s heavier here than he is on the Master System, perhaps to simulate “real” Sonic physics a little more accurately, but you can also pretty much stop on a dime, and the combination of the two feels awkward. The camera also needs a lot of work, as it’s basic at best and does a poor job of letting you see what’s below (to the dev if you’re reading this: there’s actually video tutorials out there on how 2D scrolling cameras work, it might be worth looking a couple of them up). It also leans into some of the tech limitations of the Master System, like how you aren’t given any rings for boss fights (and even hiding the HUD, a move done to save on resources for the large enemy sprites). I could be picky on a bunch of other little stuff, too, like how the flight mechanics feel, but there are other games to play at SAGE and I’ve got at least two more articles to write. Needless to say, this is a solid (impressive, even) foundation but it’s missing a lot of late-stage polish to clean up the tiny little rough edges.

Rayman Redemption

I tell this story every so often, but it was about three quarters of the way through Rayman 2 on the Sega Dreamcast when it struck me, suddenly: I love this game. I was being chased by a pirate ship through some rickety bridges and even though I was dying over and over and over again, I realized I had been enjoying Rayman 2 enough that I might put it in my top ten Dreamcast games. But that was 2002, and the years haven’t been so kind to ol’ Rayman. From the strangely celebrity-infused Rayman 3, to the tragedy of Rayman 4 (eventually becoming Raving Rabbids) to the endless, careless ports of Rayman 2 to every platform under the sun, one gets the impression Ubisoft maybe didn’t know what to do with Rayman. Especially now, when most of Ubisoft’s games are some form of online live service or cookie cutter open world experience (or increasingly both). But the fans know what they want. Rayman Redemption takes the original 1995 Rayman game and lovingly gives it a fresh coat of paint. The results are akin to what Taxman and Stealth did for Sonic CD in 2011, with wide screen visuals, improved controls, touched up level design, but gameplay that still feels faithful and accurate to the original experience. Except that Sega charged money for that, and here, fans have released this for free. Ubisoft’s loss, I guess. I didn’t play Rayman 1 until well after I’d finished Rayman 2, and I’ll admit, I kind of bounced off of it back then. It felt slow, and awkward, and when the difficulty ramped up, it got very hard, very quickly. Now, admittedly, I’ve only put about 30 minutes into Redemption here, but just the addition of a run button is incredibly welcome, and the retooled level design and powerup mechanics helps the game feel way less obtuse overall. It’s just a cleaner, tighter, more accessible and more polished version of Rayman.

Stay tuned for the next article: Indie games.

[wlwtangle]

Sonic for Beginners Guide (as of the 2020 Sonic Film)

Heya! I don’t think I’ve seen anyone make a post like this yet, or I haven’t seen a post like this yet, but if you just saw the newest Sonic film in theaters or on digital, and you’re interested in going into the Sonic community and trying out tons of other Sonic Media and don’t know where to start, here’s a guide that should help you where to go next if the only thing you have to go off of is the newest movie!

Intro

Everything that I will recommend you to in this post only assumes you’ve seen the full Sonic movie (yes, that includes the post-credits scene) and will prominently feature the following:

Dr. Eggman/Robotnik

Sonic

Tails

(No, this guide won’t feature Owl Mom, as she only appeared in these movies so far. She was never in any other Sonic media, and I doubt you’d see much of her outside the movies)

With that out of the way, let’s begin!

Games

There are quite a lot of Sonic games, and this can seem the most overwhelming, especially since SEGA has been trying their hardest to get new fans from the games rather than the films. But there are a few good games to start with if you only saw the film!

In terms of emulating any of these games: I am fine with emulation. There is nothing wrong in terms of finding ways to preserve these games for years, and if you don’t have the money to own any of these games, then I do recommend emulation. The only emulator I can recommend in terms of the old, 90s Sonic games would have to be Kega Fusion, and if you want to find the ROMs/ISOs, good luck. I can’t tell you how to find ROMs/ISOs, as that is illegal, so I’d recommend asking a friend for help or DMing me if you need help finding a place to find ROMs/ISOs, but legally I can’t post where to find ROMs/ISOs. Despite all of that, when possible, please support SEGA by buying them officially when possible. With that out of the way, let’s truly begin!

Sonic the Hedgehog (1991) - The very first Sonic game, of course, is the best place to start. Not the 2006 one! The 2006 game also titled Sonic the Hedgehog for Playstation 3 & Xbox 360 is not a good representation of the Sonic brand SEGA has been trying to push today, and it’s not a great game overall to start with. Sonic the Hedgehog from 1991, however, is! It isn’t based off the new film, but it is what the current film has the most based off of. It starts off with the basics; you play as Sonic, and you have to stop Dr. Eggman from taking over the world, while saving all your animal buddies. It isn’t too long of a game, and better yet, this game is the easiest to get. It’s available on the Playstation Network store, Xbox Store, Nintendo Eshop (both for the Switch and 3DS), Steam (for Windows and Mac), and it’s even available on both Apple and Android devices! It’s free on phones, but you have ads, so that’s probably one of the best places to start in terms of games!

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (1992) - Now, if you just saw the film, including the post-credits scene, then this is another perfect place to start. Not only can you play as Sonic, but you can also play as Tails! There are tons of more levels than in the first game, and there’s even a little secret if you collect all the Chaos Emeralds! (can’t say much about those as they haven’t been introduced in the films yet) And like the first game, there are tons of places to get this game. You can get this on the Playstation Network store, Xbox Store, Nintendo Eshop (on both Switch and 3DS), Steam (Windows and Mac), and on both Apple and Android devices! Like the first game, it’s also free on phones, with ads, so if you played the first game or only saw the newest film, this is another great place to start.

Sonic Mania (2017) - Another perfect place to start, and one of the best Sonic games in the past decade, this is an official catch-all Sonic game made by fans for not only the classic 90s games, but also features new levels and new playable characters that haven’t been seen in any recent games, including Mighty the Armadillo and Ray the Flying Squirrel. Now, I don’t think we’ll ever be seeing Mighty or Ray anytime in the films, but Knuckles is in this game as well (and in Sonic 2, I forgot to mention that), and I got a feeling Knuckles might show up in the next Sonic film. But yes, you can play as Sonic and Tails, of course. And this game does also have a multiplayer mode as well, and tons of extra secrets. And honestly, if you do want a recent game to start off with, Sonic Mania might have to be the best place to start with. And the best part is, this game is available on all recent modern gaming hardware, including Playstation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and Steam (Windows and Mac). Sadly, this game isn’t available on smartphones, but that shouldn’t detract from how good this game is. While the base game is cheap, only running you at $20, the DLC for this game only costs $5, while the physical release of this game (which includes the base game, DLC, and more), should only cost you $30.

Now, I hear ya, platformers aren’t really your thing. You don’t have the most modern, recent gaming devices, and your computer/laptop isn’t that powerful either. You only have a smartphone, and you only play mobile games. In that case, SEGA does also deliver in smartphone games, especially for Sonic! There is really only one I can recommend for beginners that even did include a limited event based on this film (that sadly has already passed), and that is

Sonic Dash (2012) - Possibly the easiest place to start with in terms of Sonic games on smartphones. Even though Sonic 1 & 2 are available for smartphones, SEGA did make and release this before those games came out. And with 100 million downloads, who could deny how huge this game has been for them. You really only start out as Sonic, play through Green Hill Zone, and you fight Dr. Eggman. Gameplay-wise, this game is very similar to Temple Run/Subway Surfers, so if you played those games, then this game shouldn’t be that hard to get into. As you play this game, you’re able to unlock more characters, including Tails, and you even get to unlock more levels, and even get to upgrade your characters as well. It is available on Apple and Android devices, and is free to play, despite all of the ads, so you can start off there if you don’t want to play any big Sonic game and just want a casual, light mobile game to play.

Now, Sonic didn’t only have games to boot. He also had tons of cartoons and comics! And let’s talk about those cartoons!

Cartoons

There are tons of Sonic cartoons out there, and there really aren’t that many to start off with if you only saw the film. These are the only few I could recommend to start off with.

The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog (1993-1995) - One of the first Sonic cartoons by DiC (animators behind the old Mario cartoons), this is honestly one of the few Sonic cartoons I could recommend to beginners, or only those who have seen the film. It stars Sonic and Tails, as they defeat evil plans by Dr. Robotnik, and it does include characters exclusive to this show. And despite the reputation this show has, I’d say this is one of the better cartoons to start off with. Sonic the Hedgehog 1993, or better known as SatAM (Saturday Morning Sonic Cartoon), isn’t really that good of a place to start off with if you only saw the movie. Not only does this show feature tons of characters that aren’t really seen outside of this show and the Archie comics, but this is a little bit more serious, and I don’t really recommend this to beginners who only have the film to go off of. AoSTH, however, is a lot more light, comedic, maybe even a little more childish, but it is one you can have on in the background and don’t really have to pay attention to, and it’s one you could show to kids. You can find this show currently on Netflix, as well as a number of episodes have been uploaded to YouTube in HD, so you can choose wherever you want to see this show.

Sonic Mania Adventures (2018) - A short series of shorts based on Sonic Mania, I’d say this is another great place to start especially in terms of cartoons. They’re all silent cartoons, and are based on Sonic Mania, but also features an original story to boot. Best part; you can watch them on YouTube now. Here’s a video with all of the episodes combined, and they also made a Christmas Special as well. The whole series is only 15 minutes long at most, and it’s something I definitely recommend checking out if you have the time.

Sonic the Hedgehog the Movie/the OVA (1996/1999) - An absolutely different movie from the actual Sonic movie we got a couple months ago, despite some obvious problems within the script and writing itself, I’d highly recommend checking out this movie! This is a really good movie that captures the speed of Sonic perfectly, and is one of the only few Sonic cartoons based on that 90s anime aesthetic. So if that suits you, then I’d recommend checking out this film on YouTube.

Comics

Now, this is even harder to decide on where to start with when compared to the cartoons. Not only are all the comics not that good, but they are all especially dependent on whatever type of knowledge you have on Sonic. The Archie comics are really only dependent on SatAM, and are cancelled! But the IDW comics are heavily dependent on if you played Sonic Forces, which isn’t that great of a game to begin with if you’re only knowledge of Sonic is based on this new film. But the IDW comics aren’t even on that good of an arc now. The British Fleetway comics aren’t that great either; not only are they ableist (with Super Sonic being “mentally insane” and evil), those comics are also cancelled as well. I really only have one comic series to recommend to beginners, if you can even find them.

Sonic -Mega Drive- (2016) - Made by one of the best writers for the Sonic comics, Ian Flynn, and drawn by the same person who redesigned Sonic for the new film, Tyson Hesse, these are a series of one-shot comics based on the original Sonic games. Very easy to get into, the cast isn’t that large, and overall it’s just a whole lot more appealing than the Archie or current IDW comics! There’s only two issues, with a third one that was cancelled due to SEGA withdrawing the Sonic license from Archie in 2017. If you can find them, I recommend checking them out.

Misconceptions About Sonic the Hedgehog and the Fandom

Now, coming out of the new film, you are really interested in Sonic the Hedgehog, but you already know about a whole lot of misconceptions about Sonic and his fandom, which may turn you off from going into this. So I am here to smash down a lot of those misconceptions, because a majority of them are all wrong, and I’m pretty sure anyone can enjoy Sonic after watching the film.

1. The Sonic Fandom is only full of overgrown babies who complain about all the newer games and only love the old games. 

This is an absolutely terrible misconception! This is absolutely not true for the entire fandom, and despite the bias I have towards the 90s Sonic era as seen in this guide, let me say this: There is no one wrong place to start with in terms of games. The Sonic Adventures games are good, Sonic Colors is good, and so is Sonic Generations and Lost World. There is no terrible Sonic game, and if there is, then that game probably has a small fandom of people who see the positives of that game, and only wish to improve on it. You are not wrong if you have an unpopular opinion on any Sonic game, and you can honestly enjoy any Sonic game of your choice. Yes, there are gatekeepers in this fandom, but they are small in numbers when compared to the majority of this fandom. This fandom is absolutely welcoming of any Sonic fan who enjoys any part of Sonic, and if anyone online is making you feel bad about enjoying any part of Sonic, then you can either ignore them or block them. You don’t need to hear their voices, as their voices are only minor when compared to this whole fandom.

But yes, there are people like SammyClassicSonicaFan who do have a bias towards 90s Sonic games, and there are people who have a bias towards the Modern games. But overall, it doesn’t matter what type of games you do enjoy, it’s just that you don’t bully or harm anyone else for enjoying those games. And again, mostly everyone in this fandom are fine with whatever Sonic game you like. Not that many people really bullies anyone in this fandom, and if they do, then again, they are the minority.

2. The Sonic Fandom is full of furries who only draw porn of the characters.

Yet again another terrible misconception about the Sonic fandom! Just because you’re a fan of Sonic, doesn’t make you a furry. I am one of the rare exceptions, though, as I am a Sonic fan, and a furry as well, and Sonic is partially the reason why I am a furry. But overall, I have met Sonic fans who aren’t furries, and I’ve met furries who aren’t Sonic fans.

And to that other half of this misconception; no, just no. Not only are the majority of the cast practically children (Tails is 8, Amy is 12, and Sonic is even 15), a majority of the characters who are 18 or over only barely fit that range (Rogue is 18, Vector is 21), and a majority of adults don’t even have confirmed ages (Dr. Eggman doesn’t even have a canonical age, and there’s been debate over whether Shadow is 15 or over 50 years old). So no, we don’t draw porn, and almost all of us are grossed out when we find Sonic porn (the only exception of this are the creeps who do draw that porn, but we don’t consider them apart of this community).

So there you go! That’s all I could think to mention in this whole guide! I hope you have fun enjoying these shows and games, and I hope you especially have fun in the Sonic community!

If you do have anymore questions about anything related to Sonic, feel free to DM me or send me asks/anons on this blog.

[sonicfanj]

One of the things that endears Tails and Amy to me is the strength of self contrast the two of them used to have that sold a positive message of freedom to be yourself. 

In Tails’ case it was the fact that he was both athletic and highly nerdy in a time era when you were either one or the other (jocks vs. nerds anyone?) and promptly insulted for either. Jocks were frequently called dumb behind their backs for fear of physical retaliation while nerds were insulted for liking anything that wasn’t scholastically approved in addition to enjoying science and were frequently physically abused because of their physical frailty. Yet, along comes Tails who is both a nerd and has the physical ability to put most jocks to shame. He married these two opposing extremes/contrasting archetypes in a character who strangely lacked any self confidence yet was always encouraged to do his best and embrace being him. He embodied the good of both athletic and intellectual ability while sympathizing with how no matter how good you are there is always insecurity. He’s such a superb character in that regard to me.

Then you have Amy, who still faces the same stigmas over and over again that have been persistently present since she was introduced. If a girl is girly she must be frail and simultaneously is demeaning to women because she paints a stereotype that prevents woman from being equal with men. If a girl is a tomboy she is throwing away her femininity and trying to be a man to earn “false respect” without recognizing her place. I’m sorry, what? This type of rhetoric has always found its way to Amy conversations and as a result people ignore her spectacular contrast of being a girly-tomboy. She enjoys traditionally girly things like fashion, frilly things, thinking about the boy she likes, and simultaneously loves doing the things that the boys do such as going on adventures, taking part of the action regardless of the form, and so on. Like Tails, Amy takes two supposedly opposing extremes/contrasting archetypes and marries them into a character that has both harmoniously. And then on top of that she is absolutely over the moon happy when she is doing either traditionally girly or boyish activities and strongly emphasizes that these activities are enjoyable and can exist together harmoniously. The emphasis she brings to just doing what she likes and enjoying that has always been so inspirational in my opinion.

Unfortunately I have seen too many people demand for both of them that they pursue a unique identity by shaving off large chunks of who they are. I constantly see people wanting Tails to be the gadget guy because it matches his smarts and makes him distinct from his hero that he wants to be like, or bashing Amy for either being too girly or too boyish as it makes her a bad role model for girls by not being some elusive idea strong female character. Somehow these individuals fail to realize that Tails is awesome because he has brains and athletic ability, pretty much able to be the Spider-Man of the Sonic universe if just given the chance, and fail to understand that Amy is a great role model and powerful female character because she embraces who she is, what she wants to do, and lets absolutely no one tell her she can’t be her even though they don’t like it. It just eats me up when I see Tails not using his physical abilities or Amy stripped of her everything to be some model female clone who supports indescribable agenda’s that she better supports by just being her.

Tails and Amy are built from contrasting archetypes and are so much stronger for it with so much potential that is freely brought out just by traveling with Sonic. Tails can demonstrate his athletic ability just by keeping up, but interacting with Eggman’s creations also brings out his nerdy side as he marvels at the doc’s work. Amy has her girly side brought out as she tries to win over the boy of her dreams but also has her love of traditionally boyish things come out by her love of the adventures and excitement that she experiences by chasing after Sonic and partaking in his adventures.

Their is also the potential for a great relationship that exists between Tails and Amy as Sonic’s two biggest fans. Amy’s optimism and belief in the ability of others serves as a counter and foil to Tails’ self-doubt while Tails’ more reserved nature and abilities supports and foils Amy’s more reckless and spontaneous tendencies without necessarily the ability to keep herself out of trouble. The two support each other so well and are so heavily invested in Sonic and what he brings to their lives, as well as him as just a person and the most important person in the world to them. It’s part of the reason I believe in a trio of Sonic, Tails, and Amy instead of Knuckles* as the relationship between the three and ability to partake in a never ending road trip is so harmonious and multi-directional. Sonic encourages Tails to be his best at everything he does and constantly provides encouragement by being a great big brother figure, while with Amy he may tease her, but with her personality his teasing encourages her to keep going and strive to get better and better creating a cycle of constant self improvement. Tails meanwhile supports Sonic both with his physical and intellectual abilities while Amy’s overflowing emotions, teasing, and persistence in chasing Sonic gives him reason to keep doing what he loves (running) and also face those emotions of his that traditional masculinity and boyhood naivete frowns upon. And as stated above there is the relationship of support that can exist between Tails and Amy that is also two way.

So to me at least, Tails and Amy are such great characters conceptually who are more often than not squandered due to any number of reasons. It’s a shame to since I feel the Shōnen Jump tenants of friendship, effort, victory easily work with them and the franchise and target demographic. Then of course just their shared desire to follow Sonic on his adventures, not just with each other but with the audience, combined with the caring nature they draw out of Sonic on a much more personally level than his strong sense of justice ever demonstrates. I think SEGA/Sonic Team isn’t necessarily wrong that a trio setup best benefits the franchise, but where SEGA/Sonic Team looks at the profit margin imagery I look at the character narrative ability and think they focus on the wrong trio. Sure that trio brings instant familiarity which guarantees a quick sale, but I think that a solid narrative that fully embraces the relationships that can happen naturally and takes full advantage of that would bring the business so much more money just becasue something well crafted and believable that reaches well beyond just the gameplay/classic imagery crowd could bring back so much more. Sonic games have narrative after all, and when people come for a narrative good and natural character dynamics can it make memorable even if the narrative isn’t so much. I feel personally that Tails and Amy add that to the Sonic/Eggman dynamic and find it a shame that who should have been a one off character prevents that from being because it seems to me at least that the short term dollar signs orbiting him blind SEGA/Sonic Team/everyone else from seeing how teh franchise can grow beyond its currently shriveled state.

*[I don’t have anything against Knuckles but prefer him as the Guardian of the Master Emerald whose excursions away from Angel Island are duty related (like in the Japanese Chaotix manual) making his every appearance a question of whether or not he is an ally this time.]

[aftermathdb]

DEATH BATTLE Review: Mario vs. Sonic (2018)

A classic match… With the modern rules… Today, we are seeing an old battle with new rules, better animation, and superior research. Bare in mind, that since the original battle was animated, researched, and written by Ben, so there might be some new things, and there might be a lot of different ideas.

It’s also the first time we’re going to see Wiz and Boomstick animated too.

And the overall episode only really brings them into focus when doing a bit, a demonstration, or a bit of math. So it’s not like we’re watching these two do stuff like use a laser pointer to showcase certain things, we’re seeing them only when it would be funny, or when some math would be needed.

The initial preview states that they are going to focus on the core games, and any material from anything that would be supported from the games.

Mario’s Preview:

Mario’s preview has all the usual stats that you’d see in an initial preview.

And a quick thing about his full name is in a notecard.

(Personally, I’d go with what’s more recent).

And then there’s Mario’s arsenal. Which is uh… Pretty big.

Mario’s arsenal is very big. And with those indefinite uses, he’s got more on him easily.

(Mario easily takes arsenal in this scenario).

He’s also fast enough to react as a being of living electricity. From Mario Odyssey.

And a strength scaling feat is added too.

And Mario having a Tyrannosaurus tossing feat is backed up by the solid gold chain chomp feat back in Mario Sunshine.

And Mario’s feats are a sight to behold.

And Mario punting castles puts his best strength feat at about…

That.

By the looks of it, Mario’s definitely earned the title of Nintendo’s posterboy.

Sonic’s Preview:

And Sonic takes off at blinding speeds, with, what else, his background.

Sega’s lack of caring about how biology works in the Sonic universe is also mentioned. Like how real Hedgehogs aren’t that fast, they aren’t blue, and how Foxes are their natural predator.

Sonic’s equipment isn’t as vast as Mario’s, but it’s still pretty impressive considering that some of his are natural powers, and not limited to power-ups.

And Sonic doesn’t. exactly have Lightspeed capabilities. If one recalls from the Metal Sonic vs. Zero battle, Sonic isn’t exactly light speed, but he’s definitely at least hypersonic.

Sonic also can outrun lightning. Meaning that hypersonic is more or less lowballing Sonic’s speed stat.

And outrunning the black hole thing in Sonic Colors puts Sonic’s best speed at about…

That.

Sonic’s Super Forms also get a quick rundown as well.

And to top it all off, Sonic also has quite the tub of feats to pull from.

Sonic’s certainly earned the title of being Sega’s mascot.

The Battle Itself.

Blindferret is animating this bout, and it’s the second time they’re animating something since Smokey vs. McGruff. Mario will be voiced by Kamran Nikhad while Sonic will be voiced by Nicholas Andrew Louie. Music is done by Therewolf, and is called Retro Rivals.

So, if you saw the sneak peak, you know that the reason the fight starts is because Sonic decided to tan in Mario’s spot.

(And here I thought the reason for Yang starting the fight with Tifa was petty).

Sonic lands the first hit, and until Mario manages to land a good blow on him, Sonic is left to try for a Wisp. By the looks of it, Mario isn’t being granted Cappy, but considering Sonic’s ability to resist mind control, there’s probably no reason to believe that Cappy would have made a difference.

And after using his Catsuit and Double Cherries, Mario manages to force Sonic into the water, and get him to use up his Water Shield.

This forces Sonic to utilize his Super form, and makes Mario use his own Star and Wing Cap. Until the battle gets taken to space, where the resulting clash causes…

That. The resulting clash causes THAT.

Finishing Blow in

5…

4…

3…

2…

1…

And the trip back down paints a clear picture as to who would win, considering that Mario up and throws Sonic downward at what can only be assumed to be way faster than terminal velocity.

(So uh… Does this mean that Luigi could beat Tails, or…?)

Verdict + Explanation.

So, in terms of arsenal, it was pretty even… at least considering what each power up could do. But Mario’s wider range of Power Ups gave him a leg-up.

Sonic had speed, no argument there. But Mario had strength. So the big question was if Mario could hit Sonic.

And considering that Mario could react as a bolt of electricity, and pilot the Star Diver, the answer would be yes.

Another factor in the fight would be durability. While both were impressive, Mario’s durability feat would blow Sonic’s strength out of the water.

And Sonic isn’t that much tougher than Mario either. It was only a matter of time until Mario managed to hit Sonic with an attack that could kill him.

Overall impression.

After thinking about it for a while, I came to realize the biggest reason Mario won was because he had more games in the time between the original and this than Sonic had. Mario didn’t really have many feats that could back up being able to hit Sonic back then, and while I’m trying to look at this objectively, I’m a guy who spent the last few years under the impression that Sonic would beat Mario more times than not. Not that I just blindly believed DEATH BATTLE, I just didn’t think that Mario could actually manage to hit Sonic at all to land a killing blow.

It’s a bit hard to come to terms with that, but when you write a story using the characters that appear in DEATH BATTLE and have to make them interact in a scenario where they’re not killing each other, you learn how to no longer give any shits about results.

Overall, the animation was stunning, and the music was really fun. The rundown was pretty good too, and it really feels like it was a big thing. Though, now I’m worried that the fans will start demanding that they go back on other episodes and do those over too, so that’s going to be fun. Can’t wait to see a bunch of angry fanboys demanding that they do Batman vs. Spider-Man over again because they’re still salty about the Dark Knight’s loss to the Web-Slinger (And yes. There are still people being angry and salty about it in the comments section).

8.5/10. It wasn’t a battle that I wanted, nor was it a battle I was expecting for number 100, but it was still fun.

Next Time…

I feel kinda underwhelmed by this matchup. And to be honest, I blame Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite for making people think that this was a better matchup than Ultron vs. Brainiac.

But I guess one extremist robot against another isn’t too bad of a fight. Though this now begs the question as to who Brainiac could fight.

Is there a fight that you want me to review? - Send an ask/request, and I’ll look into it!

Do you want to read my fanfic based around DEATH BATTLE itself? click here!

Thank you for reading, and I hope to see you next time for…

Robo Extremist vs. Robo Extremist.

[cutegirlmayra]

If you don't mind me asking, were you gonna right a sonamy fanfic for the song you wrote with the sirens and Amy having to save the boys? I love the plot and your singing is lovely!

(x) Used with Artists permission, please support her as well!

References this song: (x) Siren’s Song dedicated to Sonic Boom.

Prompt:

The team is once again enjoying… well, as much as they can, a Meh Burger as Sticks pokes at her food.

“Eh, I swear it moved.” she squints her eyes and peers into the hamburger, lifting a bun up to double-check…

“Hey, have you guys heard about those sisters who arrived here recently? They say that they’re professional performers!” Amy showed a poster of what looked to be a girl’s singing and dancing group.

“What? Great, more competition for Dream Boats…” Sonic folded his arms, not liking the ‘new group’ at first, leaning back in his chair.

Tails saw one of the girls and gasped, pulling the poster from Amy’s grasp and scanning it more thoroughly.

“Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!!!” Tails’s eyes kept shaking and shrinking as if he recognized her…

“What’s a gosh?” Knuckles scratched his head, putting his half eaten burger down.

“It’s Amber Titan!” Tails turned it around to reveal the one he recognized. “She did a promotion for Hello Doggy! I didn’t know who she was at first, but hey! If you’re hired to sing the Hello Doggy jingle, you must be great!” he then shook his head and looked a little guilty, “I never did see the airing… but I heard they sold the most products off that commercial for a year! I don’t recognize the other girls though…” he looked back at the picture and rubbed his chin.

“Let me see, let me see!” Knuckles pawed over the table, leaning obnoxiously and making Tails fling the paper around before Amy swiped it back.

“Aww…” he looked disappointed as he sat back down, before his eyes lit up at seeing another one of the girls. “Ah! Praise the great gosh! That’s Tiffany Titan!” suddenly turning into a fan-boys of sorts, he jumped and did a ‘gotta use the bathroom’ like dance with his feet and squee’d his his fists up by his face. “She’s on my body-workout videos! When I hear her sing the pacing, it’s almost like I can’t control how many sit-ups I do!… or leg ups… yeah, that’s right. I do them!” he put his hands to his hips and glared at Sticks, as she rolled her eyes.

“Sounds like they get around…” Sticks didn’t seem to like all the attention towards the girls,… that’s when-

“Wait a second- they can’t all be-” Sonic swiped the paper as Amy glared and growled, not liking how they were just taking her flier like that.

“Great GOSH! I DO recognize one!” At first disbelieving, Sonic suddenly shook his head and blinked again, “This… it can’t be!? I knew I recognized the ‘Titan’ name but… Merida Titan!!! She’s the number one Air-gear rider! It’s like everyone she goes against is stunned by her wicked moves and sick singing chords! She can shred the skate-park AND a guitar..!” he excited grinned, before suddenly looking up, very seriously, drooping his eyes slightly to show the sudden shift of character.

“We have to meet them.”

“HELP! HELP!” The old monkey man came franically darting around left and right into Meh Burger, “Someone has to help! Three girls got stuck in a cave!”

“Three?” the three men suddenly perked their heads up, as Amy put a hand to her head and let it rest on the table, looking annoyed.

“I wasn’t even able to finish what I was saying…” She complained, as Sticks glared intensely at the burger, before smashing it down with her boomerang. She then happily smiled and began to eat it again, not seeming to care.

“What were the girls names?” Sonic zoomed over.

“Any you’ve seen before?” Tails popped over.

“Yeah! One with amazing crunches!?” Knuckles looked worried but more interested in if it was…

“Hmm… let me think… Does it matter?”

“IT MATTERS!” the boys heads completely, and aggressively, grew bigger in front of the old man as he cowered below.

“Woah! Geez! Kids these days and their caring about looks… back in my day-!”

“Great. First Gosh, now there’s a Geez?” Knuckles looked confused. “Why don’t I know these people!? I knew a Titan..?”

“Spare the lecture old man and tell us if they looked like this?” Sonic lifted a hand up and then pulled the flier to his face.

“Hmm… well, all I can say is there was cries of help, and they were… strangely beautiful too… Strangely alluring and … melodious.”

“It’s gotta be them!”

“Or did I mean mischievous?”

“We’ve gotta save them!” Tails turned excited to Sonic as he returned the gesture with his fists raised in anticipation of meeting the idols.

“Or perhaps… malicious?”

Amy’s head suddenly perked up, “Malicious? How could cries of help sound malicious?”

But before the old monkey could answer her, Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles fist pumped and ‘yeah!’d together, jumping up and smashing their bodies together in a ‘teamwork/friends’ way and took off.

“Maybe I can get her to sign my abs!” Knuckles was heard shouting out as Amy once again shook her head, getting up and throwing her hands down by her sides.

“Men!”

“Idols..?” Sticks’s eyes suddenly widened, “Oh no! People worship idols! These girls must be up to no good! Come on, Amy!” She grabbed Amy’s arm and dragged her behind as she ran after the boys. “There’s only a handful of caves on this island, they’ve gotta be in the deepest, darkest, most murkiest one!”

“That’s all of them!” Amy cried out, trying to get at least a ‘foot’ on the ground. “Ugh! Why does everyone just lug me around!? I can WALK, darn it!”

Upon reaching the cave, the boys panted in exhaustion.

“This… is the last… one.” Tails wiped some sweat from his brow and arched his back from hunching over. “Phew…”

The boys shook their heads, “Snap out of it, team! Put on your brave hero faces! We’ve got some damsels to save! With marketable signatures...”

They shook themselves into more ‘daring’ poses before Tails threw up his Hello Doggy notebook and pen, clicking the pen before charging inside.

Once in, they called out to see if anyone would answer, but instead, they heard… singing for help?

That’s when their eyes began to change color and they felt their bodies moving strangely to the music.

“Someone’s gotta be here!…w-woah…” Tails was the first to feel woozy. “Ah! What’s happening???” his body began to dance on it’s own, as Sonic and Knuckles also fell under the spell.

“It’s like my body can’t fight the power!” Knuckles started doing something ridiculous as Sonic questioned him with an odd expression.

“Knuckles? That’s not even dancing! Why can’t we stop?” He then looked to his feet….

(Song Starts here, but before Amy’s lyrics come in to play…)

Amy and Sticks dashed into the cave, seeing the lights and party music, they looked up to see the girls dancing in silouettes, and their shadows locked onto Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles from the floor.

At this point, the team were like zombies, and their essence of energy was like sparkles in the air, drifting over to the girls and giving them power.

“Witch doctors!” Sticks jumped and clang to Amy’s head, making her stumble a bit, but both weren’t seen.

“I told you! Idols require sacrifices from their followers! And right now, our friends are giving them a strange, voodoo dance to satisfy their strange tastes in dancing genres!!” Sticks’s nails dug into Amy as she ‘ow’d! and ripped her off, holding her out as Sticks pulled in like a kitten being held by one hand.

“No, Sticks! They’re under some kind of… of brain-control or something!”

“Harpies?”

“No, more like-”

(music and ‘bom-da-booms’ play)

Amy glares at the girls, stepping forward. “…Sirens.”

She looked to her friends, “But how do we?”

Sticks took out, her battle-cry fierce but the girls saw her coming and Sonic sped out to stop her.

Sticks screeched to a halt and went on all fours, hissing, but Amy pulled her back.

“They’re being forced to defend them!”

“Then there’s only one thing to do!” Sticks sucked in air.

Amy plugged her mouth, “What are you doing!?”

Muffled noises were heard before Amy looked annoyed and moved her hand.

“-And so by that logic, we HAVE TO SING TO FREE THEM!”

“…come again?” Amy blinked, a little hesistant before Sticks cleared her throat and got up.

Again, Amy stopped her.

“No, Sticks! You’re singing put a rock down, but I don’t think it will help draw out everyone’s true selves… no offense.” she bent her ears slightly.

Sticks folded her arms, “None taken… hmph.” she turned her head away. “Alright, Angel of music, you sing.” Sticks teased, and kicked her forward.

(Amy’s part. Ending of song)

Liiiiisssteeeennn~

Snapping out of their delusions, Sonic and the team shook their heads, feeling weak.

“W..what was that?”

“I… I think it was Amy?”

“Impossible! You sing like a karaoke fanatic!” one of the girls swished out her hand, her long tail mimicking the action.

“How could you stop our spell? We were almost youthful again!” the other sister stated.

Amy looked back and noticed how Sonic and the team seemed to age a little… Tails grabbing his back and Knuckles unable to do a push-up, crying out, “nooo…!” and shaking his fist in the air. “Darn you, Geez! Darn you…!” he then fell flat on his face, starting to snore.

“Give my friends back their youthful energy, or else!” Amy brought out her hammer.

The more buffer of the girls stepped forward, “Or what?”

Amy grinned, and spun her hammer to point to Sticks. “Hit it, Sticks!”

Sticks started to sing and the girls gripped their ears, in great pain they suddenly shot their hands out and the sparkles of energy returned to their friends.

“Amy…” Sonic tried to keep himself awake, before Amy caught him from falling down.

Sticks caught Tails who’s fur was turning back to normal again, not grey or white like it was fading too.

But when she looked up… she saw Knuckles falling, and whimpered with a ‘Oh great…’ as he smashed down on her.

Her free foot twitched at the impact.

Sonic shook his head one more time, patting whatever was holding him as Amy felt the strange pats on her back, shoulders, and finally on her face.

“…Are you quite done waking up yet?” she mumbled under his hand as he lazily looked up.

“…AH!” he jumped away.

“Where… where did you come from..? Where are the girls!?” he looked around, before glaring at the sirens who were on their knees.

“Make it stop! It’s in my head! It’s in my head!” the three suddenly burst into sparkles of light, and Amy coughed.

“Ah! I feel younger and yet… some of it’s in my mouth! pah, pah!”

Tails slowly got up, “I don’t know what exactly happened… but I have a feeling those girls weren’t real to begin with…” he rubbed his head and tugged Sticks a few times to get her out from under a resting Knuckles.

She took a huge swallow of air as her head came up from below him, “Air… I taste air! Sweet air…” She then shook off her body like a dog and glared back at Knuckles, before turning to the rest of the team and putting her hands to her hips.

“Next time when I warn ya of the supernatural… don’t look at me like I’m the crazy one.” she dusted herself off from all the sparkles, before she felt her face and suddenly smiled. “Hey, I think my face just got lifted.” she pulled her cheeks up. “That means ten years added right?”

Knuckles turned his head, “Emm… I dreamed there were other people like us… but less bandages and chili-dogs instead of burgers… Hey! You had paige arms!” he pointed to Sonic. “Strange dream…” his eyes looked droopy and he suddenly went back to sleep.

(something like that, lol xD it was meant to be a ‘sonic boom’ episode, but here’s more sonamy, haha)

“I wonder what broke us from the spell?” Tails wondered, coming back as Sonic’s mouth turned to a fine line.

“I remember hearing Amy’s voice… and then seeing her trying to dance… you know, she’s not half bad.” Knuckles smiled, pointing a finger up. “Maybe I should get her autograph!”

“What about you, Sonic? I remember Amy’s voice drowning out the sirens too! It was… sweet… full of care and concern for us.” Tails smiled sweetly, looking up at the sky before Sonic swung his hands out, shutting his eyes closed with great intensity as he spoke quickly and abruptly.

“I-I don’t what you’re talking! I broke out of that spell myself! Amy just was there!” Sonic folded his arms.

“…” the two looked over him to each other and smiled, passing him and linking arms.

“So pretty~ like a little siren herself!”

“But a good one! And those hips don’t lie!”

Sonic twitched, before shaking a fist and following after them. “Wa-wah-what we’re you doing looking at her hips!? H-hey! Q-quit talking about Amy behind my back!”

He chased after them before mumbling to the side..

“I guess she was kinda pretty…”

“Yeah!”

“Her voice or her hips..?”

“GUYS!”

“Hahaha!” they both laughed as Sonic embarrassingly looked away and pouted to the screen.