The entire Metal Virus Saga seemed to be a clear effort to give Cream the Rabbit much needed focus after being one of few noteworthy characters left out of Sonic Forces, being replaced by the Chao (and Omochao) in Team Rose for Team Sonic Racing without even a namedrop in the story, and overall being one of the most Out of Focus characters in the franchise as of late. Cream's bravery and heroism being brought up by other characters and actively shown as well as her getting to fight Zeena and Zavok in Issue #27 and Issue #30 respectively might also be an attempt to refute the common perception of Cream being a weak and useless character. Ian Flynn had also received criticism from vocal Cream fans during the Archie Comics for underutilizing Cream after her introduction, particularly in the reboot, which would make the Metal Virus arc three levels of a saving throw for Cream's character. Memetic Badass: Vanilla the Rabbit has accrued this reputation, with this comic helping establish some traits that emphasize her having a steely disposition past her pacifistic nature compared to past media. This includes being able to go full Mama Bear when the Metal Virus hit, supported by her being able to put the fear of god in Amy Rose, Rouge the Bat'', along with Rough and Tumble, with only a sly smile or her cutting words. Since she's the mother of Cream, a notorious Game-Breaker that has a similar memetic badass status, it's likely no surprise. Surge and Kit's personalities and their mental issues. Are they purely the result of Dr. Starline's brainwashing? Or did they always have those traits and issues deep down within their subconscious minds, but were brought out to the forefront by Starline's meddling? The comic is deliberately very ambiguous about their true nature and what is, or what isn't the result of Starline, with Ian Flynn admitting that he doesn't really know himself when asked on the Bumblekast. In the Sonic the Hedgehog comics by IDW Publishing, for some time, Mecha Sonic was considered to be Eggman's "most prized and remarkable creation". However, after his defeat on Angel Island he eventually ended up on the shore of Scrapnik Island, forgotten by Eggman. He was fixed and reprogrammed to not be hostile by E-117 Sigma, and became a guardian for the island. [3] [10] The climate disruptor caused a large storm, which incidentally damaged the nearby Tornado, Sonic the Hedgehog and Miles "Tails" Prower's plane, and made them crash onto the island. Sonic injured his ankle and fell unconscious, which led the Scrapniks to offering their help to Tails. They dragged the hedgehog inside the station and supplied him with a metallic brace. Following this, Sonic was placed under observation. [1]

The repurposed piece of metal Sonic uses as a snowboard to escape from Mecha Sonic Mk. II is similar to a piece of concept art and toy from the Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (2022) film. Anniversaries ( 10th, 15th, 20th, 25th, 30th) · Conventions ( Sonic Boom, Sonic Party 2002 Summer Festival, Sonic Party 2003 Summer Festival, Summer of Sonic) · Fast. Friends. Forever. · Franchise timeline · Ken Penders' legal cases · Project Sonic · Sonic 2020 · Sonic Generations of Skate · Sonic in Sydney · Sonic the Hedgehog 30th Anniversary Symphony · Steve Aoki x Sonic Concert · Sonic Symphony World Tour Team Sonic Racing Plus Deluxe Turbo Championship Edition one-shot (May 22, 2019) (a reprint of the story featured in Team Sonic Racing One-Shot, which also includes bonus features) Two of the major criticisms of the Metal Virus saga, as stated above and below, were the excessive length and excessively downer tone for the majority of it. The first arc immediately after it, Chao Races and Badnik Bases easily rectifies both with a much more manageable length of just 4 issues and a considerably lighter story and tone.Jewel the Beetle – a beetle museum curator and Tangle's childhood friend who later becomes the newest Restoration leader following the Metal Virus pandemic.

Dr. Starline is one of the biggest examples in the whole comic. His obsession with Dr. Robotnik is often seen as at least partially romantic as he's absolutely enamoured with the man. His reaction to Eggman giving him the boot is often compared to that of a jilted lover, Zavok even telling Starline "You don't need him." The Imposter Syndrome miniseries has him take Dr. Eggman's rejection poorly with his resentment of Metal Sonic making it clear that he sees him as a third wheel between him and Dr. Eggman. When he sees that Dr. Eggman still kept the action figure of him, he has a relapse and decides he wants Dr. Eggman by his side when he takes over the world. Issue #50 takes this to it's logical conclusion with Dr. Starline's dialogue showing that he's still enamored with Dr. Eggman. He even tells the mad doctor that he's doing this for him and that he wants Eggman to listen to him for once. Dr. Eggman is merely annoyed and treats Dr. Starline as a clingy Stalker with a Crush, even admitting that he had been taking precautions against him. Foster, George (11 November 2022). "Sonic Frontiers Has References To Jet, Tangle, Cream, And More Of Sonic's Friends". TheGamer. Valnet Inc . Retrieved 22 November 2022. I Just Want to Be Free: In Issue #2, Sigma tells Sonic that all the Scrapniks on the island want to leave. Scrapnik Island might be their home, but it's also a prison in their eyes and a reminder of their terrible origins as members of Eggman's army. Surge has already received plenty of sympathy and desires of a Heel–Face Turn from fans, since it's revealed that much of her bloodlust and Ax-Crazy nature is the result of it being programmed into her instead, often ignoring that she still wants to hurt people and kill Sonic, even if she doesn't know why. Her relationship with Kit is also downplayed by some into a more typical Sibling Rivalry, in spite of the very verbally abusive undertones of it in canon, such as her threatening to drown him with his own tails. Even after she and Kit learn about their origins and choose to betray Starline, she's only slightly less mean to Kit, and she's ultimately still just as misanthropic and dead-set on killing Sonic, Eggman, all their allies and "every stupid city that threw 'em a parade". Character Rerailment: One of the most praised aspects of the comic is how it undoes a lot of the flanderization and derailment present in the games. Some of the characters are improved from the modern games' portrayals.Darker and Edgier: Like the Metal Virus Saga of the main comic, this miniseries is set up as a horror tale with only occasional comedy. Joshua Davison on Bleeding Cool gave the first issue a score of 6.5/10, praising the art and creativity of the story but criticizing Sonic's characterization: "Sonic is an insufferable character... He's smug, annoying, and radical in that 1990's sense." [15] Many fans of Sonic the Hedgehog (Archie Comics) migrated to this series due in no small part to the series having many of the same creative staff. There's some Fandom Rivalry, but it's small, and most fans accepted that it wasn't this series' fault Archie Sonic got canned.

Ian Flynn: I mean, sure, you can have fun with him, you can love him, but… don't think he's anything short of just vile! Even better: Eggman gets infected with own virus—by Froggy, no less—before it's all over, and only avoids becoming a Zombot thanks to Sonic and Silver. The fact that he almost gets Killed Off for Real note since the Metal Virus' victims disintegrate after about 200 years by tripping over a non-sapient frog makes his long-overdue comeuppance all the more satisfying. Shadow's characterization as an loner arrogant rival with temper problems, which many remark is similar to Vegeta from Dragon Ball Z, has been believed to be a result of SEGA mandates, following a secondhand statement made on Reddit regarding what Ian Flynn intended for Shadow's actions in issue #19— namely that Shadow was originally supposed to remove his inhibitor rings and unleash his full power against the Zombots, leaving some to believe the original plan was that Shadow would do so upon being infected to buy everyone else more time as opposed to letting his own arrogance take control. In 2022, however, Flynn has clarified that the only real change SEGA asked of him to make for that issue was to have Shadow not remove his inhibitor rings before fighting against the Zombot horde, indicating that Shadow was always intended to lose as a result of his own arrogance.

Tropes involved with this mini-series:

All the Scrapniks were initially part of Eggman's grand army until he abandoned them, and they washed up on Scrapnik Island. After Sigma arrived, he helped rebuild them so they could turn over a new leaf and live peaceful lives. The mystery of Belle's origin became this due to the fact that, to anyone who read the series from the beginning, it's pretty obvious who her father is. To the comic's credit, it is heavily implied Sonic knows exactly who created Belle, and the long build-up isn't so much for the reveal but how other characters, especially Belle herself, will react to said reveal. Still, many a fan wished they would get on with it already, not helped by yet more scheduling delays. She was finally revealed to be the creation of Mr. Tinker, Dr. Eggman's amnesiac alter-ego, in Issue #40, a full eight months after her debut in real-time. This has contributed to her divisive status among readers (especially compared to Tangle and Whisper).

Dr. Starline walks towards the line several times before crossing it twofold with his mental/emotional torture of Belle and horrific live- experi menta tion on Surge and Kit, not helped by the callousness and twisted glee he shows all throughout. Even Eggman is surprised (and impressed) by the extremes Starline went to ( in vain) for his idol's recognition. Mimic – a shapeshifting mimic octopus and former comrade of Whisper who betrayed his team to Eggman. Vanilla and Cheese have been turned against Cream once before, when Boom-Boos possessed them in Sonic X Issues #13-14. On July 21, 2017, IDW Publishing announced a deal with Sega to produce a new series of Sonic comics following the cancellation of the previous Sonic the Hedgehog series by Archie Comics after a 24-year run. [1] The new series began with a four-week long event where the first four issues were released each week in April 2018, followed by a monthly release of subsequent issues starting in May 2018. Archie Sonic writer Ian Flynn was later confirmed to return as the series' lead writer, alongside artist Tyson Hesse. [2]

X-Reads Podcast Episode 86: Uncanny X-Men #209 with Kieron Gillen

Official solicitation [ ] The call is coming from within the Death Egg... Sonic is in big trouble and Tails must rush in to save him from Mecha Sonic who is toying with his head…LITERALLY! [1] Featured stories [ ] Story one [ ] At some point in time, it was abandoned and forgotten by Dr. Eggman. Sigma then ended up in Scrapnik Island, along with the other Scrapniks. He would repair himself and the other Scrapniks and eventually build up a temporary civilization. Growing the Beard: While the first 15 issues or so were criticized for being formulaic, easy to predict, and having no real stakes to speak of, the Metal Virus saga added a genuinely creepy threat, an emotionally-charged plotline, and Sonic showing regret over past actions, which satisfied fans who wanted the comic to be more developed and thoughtful. Surge the Tenrec – a punkish cyborg lowland streaked tenrec created by Starline to be Sonic's doppelgänger, who is deeply traumatized by Starline's experiments.