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IDW's Sonic the Hedgehog - Megathread


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Sonic #36

Let start with with Shadow; BUHAHAHAHAHAHA

Spoiler

Remember when I complained that Shadow can't do anything right in this book?
Like several times already?
When talking about the last issue I said that this time Shadow must do something right, because he must choose either saving Tails/Rogue from Starline or stopping the avalanche. Conclusion?

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I cannot believe he picked BOTH options and failed at both of them. Rouge and Tails saved themself, Starline escaped without being touched by Shadow, while avalanche just effortlessly broke their dam, but kinda stopped on its own (lame).

If you're keeping the score it's a SEVENTH AND EIGHT complete failure on Shadow's part through his whole IDW career.
1 attempt at Tinker's life
2 boosting Neo Metal
3 becoming zombie
4 allowing Eggman to escape with Omega
5 loosing to Starline
6 thinking he beat Clutch, but getting fooled and leaving his allies in a death trap

This is no longer funny. It's just ridiculous. Let him win a toss coin or something. I get that losing can be a fascinating growing experience for the character, but it usually is followed by character winning afterward.
 

But he threw an apple to a chao, so he isn't such a bad guy. Yay. Honestly, I hoped for a little more impactful 'redemption'.

Side note, I wonder how Sega agreed to that. Maybe it's because we only see the silhouette of Shadow on that panel. You know, like Archie Reboot never confirmed that Eggman worked with Snively for GUN in the past, but it was bloody obvious they talking about him.

Right, rest of the issues... it's not much. Both avalanche and Starline are stopped in stupidly easy way. Like, wow Starline is incompetent in this issue.

On plus side, Cream has few cute moments, with Vanilla's scene being just hilarious.

On ending spoilers

Spoiler

Belle still keeps her origin a secret, which confuses me. Surely Evan knows we figured it out already. What's the point of proloning it any more? Couldn't this be the last page shocking reveal and next issue talk about her origin? Eh who knows.

And Starline's goal was Tails DNA.... ooookay. I'm guessing one of his enforcers will be some kind of Bizzarro Tails clone. And seeing he was no interested in Sonic, Shadow, Amy, Cream or Rouge DNA, his 2nd enforcer will probably be based on Knuckles. His own Starline Team to combat Sonic Team.

It's a bit contrived, but I have no better theory. What, he wants a secret of helicopter tails? Or copy young fox's intelligence? That would be just ridiculous.

 

Also, we're done with "Year 3". I like re-reading my old thoughts on previous issues, but finding them can be annoying so let me put a stop point here. You're welcome future me.

Spoiler
Spoiler

Issue 01 Issue 02 Issue 03 Issue 04
Issue 05 Issue 06 Issue 07 Issue 08
Issue 09 Issue 10 Issue 11 Issue 12

Issue 13 Issue 14 Issue 15 Issue 16    Annual 2019
Issue 17 Issue 18 Issue 19 Issue 20    Tangle/Whisper: 1, 2, 3, 4
Issue 21 Issue 22 Issue 23 Issue 24

Issue 25 Issue 26 Issue 27 Issue 28     Annual 2020
Issue 29 Issue 30 Issue 31 Issue 32
Issue 33 Issue 34 Issue 35 Issue 36    Bad Guys 1, 2, 3, 4

 

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1 hour ago, MetalSkulkBane said:

Also, we're done with "Year 3".

Um, no we're not? This is literally the second arc, counting Bad Guys, of season 3. Season 2 didn't end until the Metal Virus Saga epilogue. 

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1 hour ago, MetalSkulkBane said:

On ending spoilers

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Belle still keeps her origin a secret, which confuses me. Surely Evan knows we figured it out already. What's the point of proloning it any more? Couldn't this be the last page shocking reveal and next issue talk about her origin? Eh who knows.

And Starline's goal was Tails DNA.... ooookay. I'm guessing one of his enforcers will be some kind of Bizzarro Tails clone. And seeing he was no interested in Sonic, Shadow, Amy, Cream or Rouge DNA, his 2nd enforcer will probably be based on Knuckles. His own Starline Team to combat Sonic Team.

It's a bit contrived, but I have no better theory. What, he wants a secret of helicopter tails? Or copy young fox's intelligence? That would be just ridiculous.

 

See there is something interesting with how Belle is acting.

Spoiler

Let's say that Mr. Tinkerer is Belle's creator which a lot of us are assuming.

Why is she being so secretive about it? To me this means two things. It means either 

A). She is keeping a secret because she knows Mr. Tinkerer is Eggman. She feels guilty about it. But she would have to know. If she genuinely believes that Mr. Tinker is not Eggman there would be no reason for her to be so shy or scared to talk about it. There is something she has a guilty conscious about even though she flat-out claims that Eggman didn't make her. This would reveal that she is in denial/having an identity crisis because she won't come to terms with it.

Or

B). She might genuinely not know that Tinkerer and Eggman are the same guy. Yet there is genuinely some reason for her to feel nervous about giving away his identity.

Basically I am saying that even if it is Tinkerer and most readers know it, I think the bigger question is why she won't admit it. Because the fact she says her creator isn't Eggman means she is in denial (which reveals things about her character) or there is more we don't know. 

 

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Spoiler

The last scene with Shadow actually wrapped up his whole beef in this story extremely well. This entire arc(and arguably before that) he's been losing sight of what he's really supposed to be doing in favor of wasting energy on personal vendettas. This was a lesson for him and that last moment with the apple implies that he might be more focused going forward. 

Focusing on whether or not he "won" is dumb because the point of him going back to help Sonic was to show that his head is finally in the game. It's a good step forward for him. Whether he technically saved the day or not hardly matters.

 

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5 minutes ago, Wraith said:
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The last scene with Shadow actually wrapped up his whole beef in this story extremely well. This entire arc(and arguably before that) he's been losing sight of what he's really supposed to be doing in favor of wasting energy on personal vendettas. This was a lesson for him and that last moment with the apple implies that he might be more focused going forward. 

Focusing on whether or not he "won" is dumb because the point of him going back to help Sonic was to show that his head is finally in the game. It's a good step forward for him. Whether he technically saved the day or not hardly matters.
 

 

Spoiler

...Except he was supposed to have learnt that from the end of the Metal Virus arc, as in Shadow let his personal rivalry with Sonic, plus his ego fuel his decisions to ignore Sonic's advice, ignore the greater situation happening and get himself infected because of it. 

I mean, it's not to say this doesn't sound like a good moment, but Shadow's had this kind of development only a few issues before, and it didn't stick, so who knows if this is going to stick either? If it does, cool, but I'd still like to see if SEGA are gonna let the writers actually dedicate time to showing Shadow grow now, or if they're just gonna say "No, he needs to be like this and that" and force him back to square 1 as they already did following his resolution from the Metal Virus finale.

 

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1 minute ago, Ryannumber1gamer said:
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...Except he was supposed to have learnt that from the end of the Metal Virus arc, as in Shadow let his personal rivalry with Sonic, plus his ego fuel his decisions to ignore Sonic's advice, ignore the greater situation happening and get himself infected because of it. 

I mean, it's not to say this doesn't sound like a good moment, but Shadow's had this kind of development only a few issues before, and it didn't stick, so who knows if this is going to stick either? If it does, cool, but I'd still like to see if SEGA are gonna let the writers actually dedicate time to showing Shadow grow now, or if they're just gonna say "No, he needs to be like this and that" and force him back to square 1 as they already did following his resolution from the Metal Virus finale.

 

Spoiler

Him admitting to owing Sonic one is one step forward. This is another. He's taking gradual steps every time he appears. If you just never want to see your faves screw up or have shortsighted moments, you're reading the wrong book.

 

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1 minute ago, Wraith said:
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Him admitting to owing Sonic one is one step forward. This is another. He's taking gradual steps every time he appears. If you just never want to see your faves screw up or have shortsighted moments, you're reading the wrong book.

 

Spoiler

That's...not even remotely what I'm suggesting. Hell, I'm someone who wanted to see more screwups from them during the Metal Virus arc, specifically Sonic nearly infecting Eggman with the virus out of pure spite and anger during Issue #23.

My point is that Shadow's resolution at the end of the Metal Virus arc might've been him admitting to owing Sonic one, but he also had to take stock of how shortsighted and foolish he was to charge headlong into the infections for the sake of pettily spiting Sonic over their rivalry, and a "I told you so" instead of looking at the greater image.

This isn't a baby step in the right direction, this is Shadow actively taking one step backwards and having to be taught the same lesson more or less again, and make the same resolution to focus on the wider image, and until I see SEGA actually letting the book writers start making shit stick, I'm still going to be bleh about how much this is going to stick. I don't mind characters screwing up if it's in service of a character arc, but it's long since been established that SEGA are incredibly protective on how Shadow is portrayed, and unless that somehow starts getting eased, he's going to be in a rut of repeating the same mistake and repeating the same lesson. 

 

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8 minutes ago, Ryannumber1gamer said:
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That's...not even remotely what I'm suggesting. Hell, I'm someone who wanted to see more screwups from them during the Metal Virus arc, specifically Sonic nearly infecting Eggman with the virus out of pure spite and anger during Issue #23.

My point is that Shadow's resolution at the end of the Metal Virus arc might've been him admitting to owing Sonic one, but he also had to take stock of how shortsighted and foolish he was to charge headlong into the infections for the sake of pettily spiting Sonic over their rivalry, and a "I told you so" instead of looking at the greater image.

This isn't a baby step in the right direction, this is Shadow actively taking one step backwards and having to be taught the same lesson more or less again, and make the same resolution to focus on the wider image, and until I see SEGA actually letting the book writers start making shit stick, I'm still going to be bleh about how much this is going to stick. I don't mind characters screwing up if it's in service of a character arc, but it's long since been established that SEGA are incredibly protective on how Shadow is portrayed, and unless that somehow starts getting eased, he's going to be in a rut of repeating the same mistake and repeating the same lesson. 

 

Spoiler

This is a similar problem that a lot of long running children media have unfortunately; whether intentional or otherwise, character lessons usually don't stick, and they'll probably forget about said lesson after a couple of months have passed so that they can learn it again. 

Think about how many times Raphael and Leonardo had a falling out in TMNT, and how many times they had to reconcile. So yea, its rather noticeable that after having a moment of clarity in the Metal Virus epilogue, Shadow devolves right back to old habits and has to learn the same lesson again. So I agree that its more than likely not going to stick, especially if Sega are insistent that he has to act that way.

 

So while I do like the resolution they have for him here, I do agree that it's unlikely that its going to stick and we'll be doing this song and dance again the next time Shadow has a major role.

 

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15 minutes ago, Ryannumber1gamer said:
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That's...not even remotely what I'm suggesting. Hell, I'm someone who wanted to see more screwups from them during the Metal Virus arc, specifically Sonic nearly infecting Eggman with the virus out of pure spite and anger during Issue #23.

My point is that Shadow's resolution at the end of the Metal Virus arc might've been him admitting to owing Sonic one, but he also had to take stock of how shortsighted and foolish he was to charge headlong into the infections for the sake of pettily spiting Sonic over their rivalry, and a "I told you so" instead of looking at the greater image.

This isn't a baby step in the right direction, this is Shadow actively taking one step backwards and having to be taught the same lesson more or less again, and make the same resolution to focus on the wider image, and until I see SEGA actually letting the book writers start making shit stick, I'm still going to be bleh about how much this is going to stick. I don't mind characters screwing up if it's in service of a character arc, but it's long since been established that SEGA are incredibly protective on how Shadow is portrayed, and unless that somehow starts getting eased, he's going to be in a rut of repeating the same mistake and repeating the same lesson. 

 

Spoiler

There are obviously constraints on what they can do but when they operate well within those constraints I can't really complain. Sonic and Shadow didn't even really seem capable of working together in the last arc the way they did here, so it's a clear step forward even if it's not where you'd like him to be. 

 

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On a level,  I get it. Having Sonic and Shadow as on and off rivals and allies has way more story potential than if they were just on the same page at all times. But it's still incredibly annoying to see with knowledge that they've worked together fine in the past. But its just something I need to get over; Sega want to a establish a certain status quo with these characters and don't wanna drift too far away from that so they can maximize their story potential, but its still incredibly headache inducing when its done so blatantly.

 

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I just read Issue 36.

It's the best issue of the arc for me. I think everyone within came out looking nice and spiffy.

Spoiler

 

Shadow

Sonic and Shadow's relationship is continuing to develop, surprisingly. After he failed to listen to Sonic in the Metal Virus arc, he paid for it and recognized that he had to make it up to him. Then here, he almost does the same thing again but manages to avoid a repeat of what happened last time by helping out after a small helping hand from Rouge. He even gets a nice little adorable moment with his Dark Chao at the end, literally doing the opposite of what he did to a Chao in the TSR: Overdrive short. Though, that was still really funny.

Just acknowledging that he screwed up at the end of the Metal Virus saga wasn't him exemplifying that he learned his lesson to me. This does though. Actually seeing him about to lose it again but then stow it so that he can avoid doing what he did last time is nice.

I'd actually like to know how Ian and Evan are managing to work around this. At times it's felt like the writers have been pushing against some strict opposition concerning just him, however, the fact that stuff like this is allowed despite that does show how lucky we are that SEGA's willing to not be AS strict as a lot of other companies I could mention. The fact that they have infinitely more freedom when it comes to Sonic and Eggman is STILL baffling but if they're going to be weird, I guess there's worse ways to do it.

I really, really couldn't give less of a fuck about who's winning or whatever by the way. My favorite character is Charmy Bee and he's destroyed a single robot in Issue 5 and spent most of the rest of the book as a Zombot when he screwed up that one time. I was such a huge fan of his massive failure that I drew art of the aftermath with him being turned into a Zombot and put it in my signature. He's significantly less popular and appears far less too so having only that under my belt in comparison probably shouldn't make me as happy as it does... but it does. Because it's cool and I love seeing my favorite characters go through hell. I'm weirdly in love with conflict and seeing them all fail their way to eventual victory. 

Tails

I continue to really love the confident faces he makes when confronting danger. Obviously, I don't want him to turn into some uber, overly cocky badass but this book has been doing a great job of acknowledging that there are times when he can handle himself just fine. That said, his hair was still nabbed. Uh-oh. Someone did a failure. Hehe~!

Dr. Starline

He won. Well, sort of. He didn't exactly get out of there without a hitch and his plan didn't go the exact way it was supposed to go but he still succeeded in what he was trying to do. If that hair sample of Tails is going where I think it's going then we're in for something very, very interesting and strange. I'm proud of my boy though. Got hit by an avalanche and came out of it complaining about his perm getting messed up. Thumbs up.

Amy

She's still a badass queen. The haters can eat this giant piko to the face. 

Rouge, Omega, Cream, and the Chao

The rest of the characters had a nice assortment of things to do and I enjoyed all of their reactions. Omega was in top form of course. I'm glad he's got his body back, finally. Now that he does, they'd better not destroy it again. I don't know if I can take another search for his exceedingly rare parts again. Rouge ducking out before she could take the heat from Vanilla was hilarious. I loved seeing Cream with an army of Chao. I loved how the Chao continue to be expressive and exemplifying why they're actual characters and not mere roaming creatures. 

I love Sonic in the book as well. He's still, honestly, one of the best versions of his character. 

 

Yeah. I was a bit so-so on the start of the arc but having the complete picture makes this all feel rather well done. It was a nice, fun little adventure and it's just another monthly reminder of why I love being a Sonic fan. The only draw back, once again, is the month long wait for the next one. 

 

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I gotta say this issue got a couple more laughs out of me than I'm used to--Rouge, Starline, and at one point Belle cracked me up.

That said, with this final issue under our belt, I still this Arc is still kind of a mess. It was better off in comparison and perhaps a reread will eventually pull things together in a better way, but there's still a problem even if it's different for this one: this issue among others felt like it needed a few more pages. 

I know rushed endings is a recurring complaint some people make when it comes to these comics, but it legitimately felt like things were just ending the moment they began in the last 2/5. Moments with Cream, Belle, and even Sonic's playing dialogue are the main instances of this.

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The narrative started off very interesting and the mystery as aspect was fun. Though it quickly fell apart as things became more action oriented. Though I shouldn't really have expected otherwise from a sonic comic book.  I think that Clutch came and left to soon, and rouge and amy were really fun through out the whole thing. Cream too. I like that dynamic. Tails and Sonic were fine but they were just there. Shadow was useless. 

Some above would suggest that " winning doesn't matter" but its context that's key here.

 

Spoiler

He hasn't done anything useful since the book started and learning a lesson he had just learned not but 5 issues ago is redundant and weird from a story telling stand point. It really feels like this story wants you to forget the metal virus happened, but simultaneously wants to acknowledge that it happened. 


Context is important, sonic is an action oriented franchise and a bunch of people like shadow because he's good at fighting and beats people up. Telling those people you are " reading the wrong book " in regards to sonic. Seems like you are ignoring the material it comes from. Peoples own lack of standards with the characters they like notwithstanding. The emotional beats in this issue might not connect without the competency that makes people enjoy shadow as a character. As much as we hate sega's mandates, they are mandating him to be an angry fight guy for a reason. Reason being people like him fighting. Forgetting this in a way, is just as bad as Sega forgetting people enjoy the emotional aspects of these characters. There's a balance that needs to be struck and it isn't really struck here with shadow. In fact his story and his inclusion brings down the entire thing and it might be better with his absence. 

Spoiler

I find myself caring very little about his connection with chao and yearn for a narrative where we got to be alone with his thoughts whilst he actually got to best someone. Emotional expansion can come afterward. 

This is also seems rather moot in many ways  as someone else mentioned. These emotional moments will likely go nowhere and it will just be another moment shadow failed. Which isn't good for anyone involved. Because that just becomes the excuse right, he didn't win but he learned this same lesson over...and over....and over...where does it end. When does it become ok for someone to actually want to see characters they enjoy actually be cool? This has happening for 3ish years now and excuses are starting to run thin. 

At the end of the day I would have much rather had a story focused around the girls based around a fairly new and interesting concept. Instead of shoehorning shadow in to tell a story that had just been told. But its ok he's been a failure and uninteresting for 3 years because " growth " that is never coming. Just get rid of him at this point if you can't integrate him that well. 

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10 minutes ago, Cadence said:

This has happening for 3ish years now and excuses are starting to run thin. 

There's no excuse.

He'll only do  something 'cool' when his behavior doesn't matter.

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I agree that this arc is kinda messy, too many plotlines, but it tied up things nicely, I admit I wanted more of a Sonic & Shadow team up, but it come off as surprising the fact that they didn't stop the avalanche, it was actually amusing. Plus I just enjoyed it because of moments, interactions, and the mystery villain of course. It was plain fun and action, so I really don't mind.

The ending is also pretty much okay, not as glorious and epic as the Metal Virus in #29 but still for a small arc it did great, Evan did a good job.

Shadow I think was a victim of holding back from Sega of Japan with their mandates but still, Ian and Evan managed to create an arc for him out of this messy situation, which is a plus, in fact this issue was a continuation of his realization in #31, maybe it was too quick but who knows when Shadow will appear next. I'm just glad they wrapped it up for now since they had the chance.

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Look guys. There is nothing wrong in concept of failure.

Failure great writing tool. Remember Mecha Sally? So many people claimed "whaaa, Flynn hates Freedom Fighters" but pushing everyone to their limits lead to fascinating moments. Samurai Jack Season 5, whole Bojack Horseman, Infinity War in MCU. I get that. When characters reaches his lowest point, that's when they most interesting.

But there is no such thing as universal tool. Idea that worked in hundred stories, may not work in 101th time. And making Shadow blunder incarnate is just annoying to me.

1)  Unlike say Charmy (or Blaze in Archie), Shadow has more screen time, which paradoxically makes it worst. I didn't mined when Shadow failed first, 2nd even kinda 3rd time. But this is 3rd YEAR and I'm just unable to ignore it.

2) Shadow has ego, but he's not a comic relief. Characters like this must be able to at least partially live up to their hype, otherwise they just annoying. I'm tired of Sonic waggling his finger at Shadow, because he made poor decision for dozenth time.

3) In stories like this, failure suppose to build you up for success. Of course "there are no universal tool" I just said that. If Stanley's had specific vision, that's her choice.
I just image several other ways this story could go and it's hard to see any drawback for Shadow saving some folks from that dang avalanche. I mean, this stupid snow just kinda stops on it's own, without hurting single positive character. Isn't that just a little anticlimactic?

And yes, Shadow deciding to help instead of chasing Starline is a good thing. It just felt a bit shallow, token.
I was tired of "1 issue, 1 sidekick" formula, but pushing 9 characters is single issue is too much into opposite direction. I kinda  wonder if removing Shadow would been better idea.

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I just feel like looking at this from the perspective of characters doing cool things is pretty narrow minded. I get wanting to see your favorite characters represented well, but all too often I see people get upset whenever their favorite characters aren't onscreen doing cool shit, and I'm like...maybe you should stop defining characters solely by their actions?

Would it have been cool to just see Shadow come in, be a badass and then just leave? Absolutely, but that doesn't really do much to flesh out his personality, he's just doing cool things.

If that's your main concern, fine. But as I said, such a narrow minded view really doesn't do much in showing off a character's personality, and I think people often get confused with characters doing cool shit for actual character depth. 

 

 

Shadow being the biggest badass ever is cool, and I'm not denying that's a significant appeal about him for many of his fans, but its just that... a badass moment. Its like fireworks, cool in the moment but quickly fade away.

Shadow being so goal oriented that he loses sight of actually protecting people, and ultimately coming around to help and having a small moment of genuine kindness towards another, is  actual character writing and gets people to care about him as a person.

 

 

I'm just giving my two cents though, I get everyone has different feelings about this.

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unknown.png

I don't have anything to contribute, I just think this is cute and if tsundere Shadow is what we're getting from now on I'm good with it.

 

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On 1/13/2021 at 7:57 PM, MetalSkulkBane said:

Side note, I wonder how Sega agreed to that. Maybe it's because we only see the silhouette of Shadow on that panel. You know, like Archie Reboot never confirmed that Eggman worked with Snively for GUN in the past, but it was bloody obvious they talking about him.

Have you considered they agreed because that's how they want the character to be written? I know years of fanbase trying to glean context from Ian's podcast have set things up like the writers are actively adversarially fighting against sega to write this comic, but that's not how that works, not when it's working right at least, it's certainly not what Evan's doing. I'd have thought it's obvious after this arc. Shadow has friends, Shadow has emotions, Shadow has good; but he hides all of that and acts lone and aloof. Kinda like how he was in most of the games, you know?

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1 hour ago, The KKM said:

Have you considered they agreed because that's how they want the character to be written? I know years of fanbase trying to glean context from Ian's podcast have set things up like the writers are actively adversarially fighting against sega to write this comic, but that's not how that works, not when it's working right at least, it's certainly not what Evan's doing. I'd have thought it's obvious after this arc. Shadow has friends, Shadow has emotions, Shadow has good; but he hides all of that and acts lone and aloof. Kinda like how he was in most of the games, you know?

That reminds me how it sucks many people blame SEGA for any flaws in the narrative while crediting the writers for any perks. Unless we have a detailed list of what part is Sega's revision and what part is the writers contribution, it's better to consider that IDW is a joint project where both sides are responsible for it's success and failure.

Just that the writers have more freedom in voicing their side of the story. 

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4 hours ago, Kuzu said:

.

That is a key facet to how you define characters in fiction. What they do and don't do. What they say is important , and who they surround themselves with and how they are emotionally is also important. But the situation as it stands is that shadow is for right now a character who is  largely solitary and doesn't talk much. So all he can be really judged on his actions, and he hasn't done anything of note. This is the audience looking at a character that refuses to communicate with them or interact with others do nothing for 4 years and thinking that's lame. He's going to be this way, sega wants him to be this way. Continued attempts to try and manifest some of the old shadow though failure is ...failure because he just isn't equipped to be that guy anymore. 

I would like you to remember shadow's debut game. Sonic adventure 2. 

In sonic adventure 2 we eventually learn that shadow has this weirdly deep backstory for what sonic is and has a kind of emotional depth not really seen too much in children's platformers of that time. However this is after hours of selling us on how bad ass he is, this is the juxtaposition. He had to earn us caring about him and that was earned through badass action.  If he would have opened that game with just whining about his character growth and his dead friend...you wouldn't have cared about shadow. No one would. These characters looking cool and being cool are key parts to why people like them. Its the aesthetic. The emotional depth and all that while enjoyed by many are but toppings on that core aesthetic. So to say its narrow minded is inaccurate. People worried about that are worried about the core of that character and the series itself. 

Even by your own example , shadow fails at this. He's never had fireworks in this book that actually amounted to anything. Its also inaccurate because people post the gif of shadow time stop kicking silver to this day. Including most recently the sonic twitter. People remember that badass moments the most. Its those badass moments that put his emotional moments in perspective. It create a character that has depth and range. People post the gifs of shadow in his games intro. Saying cool things in sonic adventure 2. Draw fan art of his battle with boilizard. Have entire fan animatics of him doing battle. And that famous gif of him taking his inhibitors off and running through hordes of mephilies. 

I don't think anyone is asking for him to only punch things and win. That's rather dull and if anyone wanted that there's plenty of self insert anime to watch to get that fix. But to deny part of his and this series appeal and its core is the aesthetic and shadow's aesthetic is being a cool competent powerful operator who can and will kick anything's ass. Feels like an excuse in many ways. 

6 hours ago, MetalSkulkBane said:

 

I kinda  wonder if removing Shadow would been better idea.

From the story , Yes. I found everything but shadow interesting in this arc. 

From the book, I cannot say. One of the arguments I have been hearing for IDW shadow is that its building to something. While I have my own issues with idea that one win will make up for years of being useless. There's another thing I fear, if Evan or Ian send whatever future story they have with shadow and maybe he was supposed to actually be successful. But this success sort of hinges on cooperation with others and being less mean. And Sega denies it and wants him to be a harsh jerk. And that results in retread of the issues we encountered in issue 19. Shadow being removed from the book would be the best option. The people writing the book and how they write characters would be proven incapable of actually writing whatever character shadow needs to be. And not using him would like just save themselves the trouble. 

While I hope i'm not on the mark on this, I see this as a likely outcome. 

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30 minutes ago, KoDaiko said:

That reminds me how it sucks many people blame SEGA for any flaws in the narrative while crediting the writers for any perks. Unless we have a detailed list of what part is Sega's revision and what part is the writers contribution, it's better to consider that IDW is a joint project where both sides are responsible for it's success and failure.

Just that the writers have more freedom in voicing their side of the story. 

We already know SEGA have caused several of the issues that Shadow got hit with in the comic. Ian already went on point that Shadow's original infection was to be more in-line with how he's usually portrayed according to both a Reddit thread, and a Tweet directly from Ian, and that he wasn't satisfied with how he ultimately had to write it:

Shadow was meant to remove the inhibitor rings, and go full blast at the Zombots, with Shadow believing that with Sonic able to blast off the virus with his speed, Shadow's additional energy would allow him to burn it off even better, only for it to backfire on him, and SEGA told him to rewrite it to instead fit into the new stand-offish rival personality they have for Shadow now. 

IIRC, I've also heard it floated around a few times that Shadow's monologue at the end of the Metal Virus arc was also meant to not be a monologue, and meant to focus more on Shadow's own faults, until Ian was told to rewrite it, and specifically make Shadow think it, because Shadow would never willingly admit he's got any faults compared to Sonic out-loud.

Say what you want about Shadow in IDW. We've seen him at his best, and at his worst here, but to act as if the writers have just fully been on-board with writing him the way he is, and that SEGA has had no input is simply not true. Even a quick look towards how Ian and Evan wrote him in the past, and Ian's own misgivings with some of the ways he's had to write him after SEGA mandated this new attitude for Shadow would show you this is not the case

I haven't read Issue 36 yet, so I can't speak for how Shadow goes here, but I imagine it's more so Evan finally figuring out how to work within SEGA's restrictions and still try to push out an arc that people want to read about the character, as compared to this being planned all along and SEGA not really giving a shit. The question that remains now is if the development gets to stick or not from this point onwards. It wouldn't be the first time that interesting questions have been raised in the comic, or interesting developments, only to have to erase them essentially for the sake of the status quo (IE - Sonic's ultimate final decision on his role in the Metal Virus arc, and letting Eggman run amok).

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