Megathread The Lara-Su Chronicles and Ken Penders topic - READ PAGE 164, POST 4096

[Zaysho]

@Zaysho: 1997-2005. I counted when Knuckles was launched to the end of 25 Years Later. I wish I was being hyperbolic.

So I guess that's nearing the end of the Knuckles series when Locke finally showed himself, right? When did Knuckles actually go "Chaos"? It was after "Sonic Adventure," right? Though, I guess it doesn't change the fact that Penders left it boiling on there for so long. While Penders is obviously just not that great a writer and likes to decompress shit all to hell, I can't say it's the concept I hate but the execution (actually, I still hate the concept, but whatever). It just got dragged out and led to nothing worthwhile except a lame comic book death and making way for more characters he didn't really know what to do with other than making them bigger stars than the title character.

 

"EnerjakEvil Reborn" had a much more satisfying payoff, and it didn't need years of boiling underneath the surface to get anywhere.

[biznizz]

Locke first showed himself to the audience at the end of the first Knuckles mini in 1996, helping him from the shadows so he can be the Guardian he was bred for & stopping Enerjak. Then through out the run of the Knuckles ongoing, Locke would show up but not meet his son until issue 25, in 1999. That's when we got the whole "Vision of the future where Knuckles kills Dr. Droid or something" thing.

 

As I eventually remembered & edited eariler, the storyline which gave up Chaos Knuckles happened after Adventure, in issue 88 and didn't end with Knuckles as normal & alive again until 125. So that was 3 years from 2000-2003, give or take a few months; 4 years if you take Knuckles #25 into the equation.

 

I counted that 8-9 years as a whole because, to Penders, it's all part of a huge saga he created for Knuckles. Aside from Knuckles: 20 Years Later never actually making it to print, that would make it all Knuckles' story. Now, due to the inability to actually use Knuckles, it all falls onto his used-to-be kid, Lara-Su. Which in his mind works since he was already setting her up to be the focus anyway.

 

Who knows, Ken thought Knuckles was better than Sonic. Maybe he thought Lara-Su was better than Knuckles?

[SenEDDtor Missile]

Kinda sorta related, but I am partially surprised he hasn't made a character who is descended from Knuckles called Pen-dor or something...cuz ya know...

[biznizz]

Eh... given that Locke was based off of Penders' own father, to the point that he wanted Locke to die in the same manner as his own father...

 

I have my own theory that Lara-Su is probably based off his own kid. You know, aside from when they were blatantly put into Sonic Live.

[SenEDDtor Missile]

Eh... given that Locke was based off of Penders' own father, to the point that he wanted Locke to die in the same manner as his own father...

 

I have my own theory that Lara-Su is probably based off his own kid. You know, aside from when they were blatantly put into Sonic Live.

...

So Knuckles is Penders?

...

...

[biznizz]

The implication is pretty damn sad, isn't it?

[QuantumEdge]

Wait, Penders has a kid? 

[Gabz Girl]

I thought those two kids in Sonic Live were his niece and nephew, or someone else's kids. =S

Still, it's super weird hearing that Locke is based on his dad and Penders actually wanted him to die a similar way...what the heeeell.

[biznizz]

Yeah, a son who's now old enough to have recently gotten engaged, apparently: Stephen Penders.

 

I know his name, because he was the boy used in the infamous Sonic Live! lead story (the girl was Penders' niece). The photos of the kids were really them, and is (other than the fact that the story completely sucked on every level) the reason that "Last Game Cartridge Hero" will never get reprinted. Hell, even when Penders was still with Archie, they would've never been able to do so.

 

Some exerpts inside the spoiler.

 

 

 

 

(Hey kids! Can YOU spot the Robotnik who becomes Dr. Droid, from the hit comic "The Lost Ones"? First 10 people to give the correct answer will win subscriptions to all of writer Ken Penders' HIT titles, such as "The Lost Ones" and "The Lara-Su Chronicles!" Hurry, before they all get cancelled & Ken gets flat broke! Send in your answer today!)

 

(BTW, yeah, Ken did just say that Sonic was mostly created by white guys and an anonymous staff artist instead of, you know, the ACTUAL people who created him: Yuji Naka & Naoto Ōshima. Historical revision, away!)

 

 

 

@Gabz Girl, it was apparently supposed to be a "tribute" & "touching", which.... yeah, it's pretty creepy. Especially if you consider that theory that Ken was living vicariously through Knuckles himself. Kenneth Penders apparently didn't have that good of a relationship with Kenny Jr until the end of his life. Which is why, even though Locke did really, awful parenting to Knuckles, the guy still tried hard to impress him and connect with him.

[QuantumEdge]

Hearing that info Biznizz makes me think Penders was using the comic as some self help book, or a way to burn off conflicting emotions.  Whether or not that's professional or not is anyone's guess, but I'm leaning into the latter.

[Jovahexeon Jax Joranvexeon]

...

So Knuckles is Penders?

...

...

Like Joe Quesada used Spider-Man and Carlie Cooper for such, Penders used Knuckles for creator's pet self-insert avatar material.

[biznizz]

Trying to live vicariously through Spider-Man during that time must have been very... odd, considering that Carlie was named after Ol' Joey's daughter. I'm sure Freud would've liked to speak to Mr. Quesadilla on that subject...

[HeroMystic]

...

So Knuckles is Penders?

...

...

 

It all makes sense now...

 

@biznizz Thanks for the summary. I remember the comics vaguely explaining that,  but I never figured how he became a living chaos emerald. I'll say the concept is pretty interesting, but the fact the way how it happened... yeah, it really does make sense now.

[Jovahexeon Jax Joranvexeon]

Trying to live vicariously through Spider-Man during that time must have been very... odd, considering that Carlie was named after Ol' Joey's daughter. I'm sure Freud would've liked to speak to Mr. Quesadilla on that subject...

Oh don't you worry. We all made the joke about how Pete who not only was fashioned to act like Quesada, but was also drawn to look like him at the time, had the editor-enforced hots for the mary-sue Carlie Cooper, awkward as it was.

 

Hey, we needed some way to sleep at night.

[Sunwalker]

Reading all of this I cannot help but think that Penders has some genuine good intentions, but they get screwed up at execution because too much passion for his work. I can see Penders doing a story with his own son because he likes him, but the story was poorly executed and putting own relatives on the book does not look good.

He do seems to be honestly proud of Sonic Live:

Source of the image: here.

[Wittymations]

...

So Knuckles is Penders?

...

...

I can kinda see it.

Lives on his own little "island", will go out and search for excu-"emeralds" when his "island" starts to sink, and will continue being a guardian despite the constantly diminishing "species," or rather, in this case, support.

[antyep]

...

So Knuckles is Penders?

...

...

 

Gee, it's a wonder why Sega treats Knuckles like a joke, these days.

[Zaysho]

It's honestly a little sad seeing Penders poured so much of his own personal life into that book, so I can almost understand why he wanted these characters... almost. I think if this was an important subject to him, he should've done something that explored it away from the Sonic book. Though this does put into perspective when he said he thought "Knuckles came from a broken home" or something in an interview from years ago. It's great the man's passionate and all, but projecting his own family problems onto these characters wasn't such a great idea.
 
I suppose it makes some sense why he's so dismissive of everybody's opinions, but passion project or not, it still makes him look unprofessional and petty.
 
@Biznizz
 
 

 

 
 
Oh, "Sonic Live!"... As a kid I was always confused as to why Penders's kid was holding a TV remote instead of a Genesis controller. As an adult, I still don't understand it. Not to mention the obvious lack of respect in not knowing who Oshima and Naka are and replacing them with "random white guys." (Psst, read the credits, Penders) SEGA didn't just not give a shit. They somehow gave negative shits regarding this.

[Eitarou]

I wonder about those two kids.

 

Do they even remember doing Sonic Live? And if so, do they ever feel any shame for being a part of that terrible thing?

[Blue Swallow]

Oh, "Sonic Live!"... As a kid I was always confused as to why Penders's kid was holding a TV remote instead of a Genesis controller. As an adult, I still don't understand it.

No wonder he died.

Not to mention the obvious lack of respect in knowing who Oshima and Naka are and replacing them with "random white guys." (Psst, read the credits, Penders) SEGA didn't just not give a shit. They somehow gave negative shits regarding this.

The guy on the right looks like he could be Japanese. Why he would make them white is odd, did he not know sonic was made in Japan?

I wonder about those two kids.

 

Do they even remember doing Sonic Live? And if so, do they ever feel any shame for being a part of that terrible thing?

I was just thinking about that myself. The fact that pretty much everyone but Penders seems to think its terrible, makes me think they're probably ashamed.

I'm slightly intrigued by this whole thing, but I can't decide whether I want to waste my time reading it or not. I've never read any of the x years later, but they seem like one of Archie's low points. From the script teaser Ken released, Lara-Su didn't seem all that interesting, she seemed very... "typical".

[Splash the Otter]

(BTW, yeah, Ken did just say that Sonic was mostly created by white guys and an anonymous staff artist instead of, you know, the ACTUAL people who created him: Yuji Naka & Naoto Ōshima. Historical revision, away!)

The guy on the right looks like he could be Japanese. Why he would make them white is odd, did he not know sonic was made in Japan?

I think I read somewhere that the "two white guys" were supposed to represent SoJ and SoA. The one on the right was likely the former.

[Zaysho]

I think I read somewhere that the "two white guys" were supposed to represent SoJ and SoA. The one on the right was likely the former.

Though it still raises the question why he couldn't have just looked up the creators and represented them instead of making shit up he didn't need to. For someone so big on how important creators are, you'd think this would be the simplest thing for him to do. But then, he only cares where his rights as a creator are concerned it seems. No one else mattered to Sonic more than Penders!

 

 

No wonder he died.

 

This made me laugh harder than it should have.

[biznizz]

I think I read somewhere that the "two white guys" were supposed to represent SoJ and SoA. The one on the right was likely the former.

I would imagine that being an excuse made up after the fact to save face. Personally, I think that Penders was too lazy to actually ask who really DID create Sonic. Given how so out of it he is with history, I wouldn't be surprised if he thought all game creators are white guys like Nolan Bushnell.

And remember that Penders was brought onto the book by Mike K. because he was "familiar with the Genesis games". Yet Stevie P. doesn't seem to actually OWN a Genesis (let alone a controller) going by the photos.

[Tails spin]

could this be his son?

[Linkabel]

He sort of looks like the kid in the comic, but do we really need to bring his family into this? (Despite the fact that he came out in the comic)

 

I'm sure no one from SSMB will do this, but I feel like other fans/guests might stumble into that link and start bothering him about his dad's actions.